This study examines the relationship between ownership structures in large European companies and their innovative activity in terms of R&D spending. The analysis is performed on a sample of 324 large innovative companies over 8 years. Contrary to the view that institutional investors can have a negative influence on R&D spending, we report a positive impact of these investors. Our study also tests the impact of 'impatient' institutional investors and provides evidence of their negative influence on R&D spending.