Institutions Love These 3 Companies, Should You As Well?

A common strategy among retail investors is to mirror the investment moves of successful firms and market leaders. Poring over the Form 13-F results of gurus like Warren Buffett can reveal valuable insights, albeit on a delayed schedule. For more timely data, everyday investors might instead look to institutional ownership to gain information about where seasoned investors are placing their bets.

Institutional ownership of 80% or more typically suggests that a company has passed rigorous evaluation processes and appeals to analysts focused on fundamentals and long-term potential. Additionally, high institutional ownership can boost liquidity and signal that a stock is likely to remain stable or even ascend in price. The three stocks below all have significant institutional ownership as well as broad bullishness from analysts, signaling their potential for growth in the future.

OpenAI Partnership, Strong Earnings Drives Institutional Interest in Thermo Fisher

The products that Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO) provides—including diagnostic products and tools, reagents, and related services—make it possible for a huge network of clients in the sciences to conduct their work.

The firm is fresh off a strong quarter despite the tumult facing Thermo Fisher's academic clients.

Thermo Fisher's recent earnings report included both top- and bottom-line wins as it reported 10% year-over-year (YOY) adjusted earnings per share (EPS) improvement, driven by growth in its life sciences solutions and specialty diagnostics divisions.

Thermo Fisher's revenue came in above $11.1 billion, prompting executives to upgrade full-year guidance. Key to this achievement is its high-momentum product development, accelerated by its adoption of AI, underscored by its recent partnership with OpenAI.

The company may primarily appeal to buy-and-hold investors due to the near-term challenges it faces, including an expected decline in its China business, lingering uncertainty in the academic sector over federal funding, and shifting tariffs.

On the other hand, repatriation of science firms may help to drive domestic growth. This could be why investment institutions own more than 89% of all outstanding TMO shares, and why about 80% of analysts call the company a Buy. 

Linde Leads in Industrial Gases Thanks to Strong Backlog and Hydrogen Potential

Sector leader Linde (NASDAQ: LIN) dominates the industrial gases space and is well-positioned to benefit from the continued adoption of clean hydrogen energy around the world.

Indeed, the company already has projected EPS gains for future quarters as a result of its massive, $10-billion backlog.

Last quarter, Linde posted a 7% YOY EPS gain and generated $1.7 billion in free cash flow, with operating cash flow up 8%.

Despite the fact that some analysts have recently moderated their price targets for Linde—likely on the assumption that the shares have already priced in some of the anticipated near-term gains—the consensus price target of more than $508 still represents almost 22% in potential upside.

Eight out of 10 analysts identify LIN shares as a Buy, and nearly 83% of shares are owned by institutions.

Financial Software Firm to Get a Boost From Tax Changes, Subscriptions

Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ: INTU), maker of financial software products including QuickBooks and TurboTax, benefits from a strong recurring revenue profile, thanks to its subscription services.

To maintain its growth, the firm will likely need to continue boosting its subscriber base through newer services like TurboTax live.

Another boost is likely to come from recent changes to the IRS's Direct File program, which will not be available in 2026, potentially pushing more users to products like TurboTax.

Institutions seem to think the company can deliver, with close to 84% of shares owned by institutional investors. This is no surprise given that 22 of 27 analysts are optimistic about Intuit's future performance—as evidenced by a consensus price target suggesting upside of 23% and one-year earnings growth just under 14%.

On top of that, INTU shares have had a middling performance this year, climbing by under 4% YTD, which may make them primed for gains if the company posts positive subscriber updates.

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