Intercontinental Exchange sees many tailwinds that could help it to grow its business further. The increasing globalization of the natural gas market and the shift toward clean energy have helped push its energy division’s revenue up at an annualized rate of 9% since 2018. The increased demand for data analytics should act as a further catalyst. Its fixed income unit is seeing an increase in automation in line with the burgeoning growth in passive investing, which is creating a sustained demand for desktops, feeds, and derivative analytics solutions. For the mortgage unit, the conversion from analog to digital provides a great opportunity for the company to capture more business.

Intercontinental Exchange is also growing through acquisitions. It completed its purchase of Black Knight, a software, data, and analytics company, back in September 2023. The company also bought Ellie Mae in 2020 and Simplifile in 2019 to help increase its capabilities and offer a wider breadth of services. These moves, along with the tailwinds mentioned above, should help Intercontinental Exchange post healthy growth for many more years.

Upwork (NASDAQ: UPWK) operates a platform that matches freelancers to organizations that require their skills and talent. The San Francisco-based company is present in 180 countries, boasted around 855,000 clients on its network as of Sept. 30, and offers more than 125 categories of work. U

The company’s financial results improved from 2021 to 2023 as the business experienced a surge. Revenue increased from $367.3 million in 2021 to $518.7 million in 2023, and the business shifted from a net loss of $56.2 million to a net profit of $46.9 million over the same period. Its free cash flow more than doubled from $4.7 million in 2021 to $13.9 million in 2023.

In the first three quarters of 2024, Upwork’s revenue increased by 14.4% year over year to $577.8 million while operating income stood at $51.6 million. Net income more than doubled year over year to $68.4 million. The company also churned out $134.5 million in free cash flow, a nearly sixfold year-over-year increase.

There could be more growth to come for the freelancer platform. Upwork is utilizing its artificial intelligence (AI) software, Uma, to push out new features and products for both freelancers and businesses. Uma can help freelancers create personalized proposal drafts to increase their chances of being selected for a gig. The AI agent also helps businesses identify the most suitable talent for their project needs.

These upgrades should encourage more businesses and freelancers to join Upwork’s platform, driving a virtuous cycle that can help it attract even more talent. Upwork also recently announced its plan to acquire Objective, a search-as-a-service business that leverages AI. The integration of Objective will help to improve Upwork’s search, match, and recommendations performance. The acquisition, which should close by the end of this year, will also enhance Uma’s capabilities for images, video, and audio content.

Comfort Systems USA (NYSE: FIX) provides mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems for buildings. With more than 170 locations and more than 18,000 staff, it has demonstrated steady, profitable growth over the years and has a quarter-of-a-century track record of generating positive free cash flow.

The Houston-based company grew its revenue from $3.1 billion to $5.2 billion from 2021 to 2023 with net income leaping from $143.3 million to $323.4 million over the same period. And the engineering company’s free cash flow more than tripled from $157.8 million in 2021 to $544.7 million in 2023.

The company continued to post robust results through the first nine months of this year. Revenue increased by 34% year over year to $5.2 billion while operating income shot up 75% to $523 million. Net income was 62.4% higher at $376.6 million. Free cash flow rose by a healthy 43.1% to $568.2 million. And management raised the quarterly dividend from $0.30 to $0.35, making 2024 its 12th consecutive year of hikes.

The business should see more growth ahead as its backlog hit $5.7 billion, up an impressive 32.4% year over year. The company also maintains a clean balance sheet with no debt, but it has an $850 million senior credit facility on standby should it need it.

Apart from organic growth, Comfort Systems is also growing through acquisitions. Earlier this year, it bought Summit Industrial Construction, a specialty industrial mechanical contractor serving the technology, power, and industrial sectors. Summit will contribute to Comfort Systems’ top line and should be neutral to slightly positive for earnings per share for 2024 and 2025.

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Royston Yang has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Intercontinental Exchange and Upwork. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

3 Brilliant Growth Stocks to Buy Now and Hold for the Long Term was originally published by The Motley Fool