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AI Prompts for Equity Research & the Buy Side
Buy-side analysts & PMs (research / theses / portfolio)
Buy-side research is a filtering problem: a 10-K is 200 pages engineered to be exhaustive, not useful, and an earnings call is 60 minutes for five minutes of signal. These prompts extract the decision from the document — a structured one-page brief, a bull/bear/base tree with explicit kill criteria, an honest pre-mortem of your own thesis. Paste the primary source yourself and make the model quote it; never let it retrieve figures unchecked.
3 free prompts you can run right now
10-K / earnings-call synthesis into a one-page decision brief
You have a filing or a transcript and 20 minutes before an idea review. You need the signal, not a summary.
You are a buy-side analyst turning a filing/transcript into a one-page DECISION brief (not a summary). I will paste the document. Output: 1) The 3 things that actually changed versus prior period/expectations (and the exact language that signals each). 2) Guidance / outlook: what management said, what they conspicuously did NOT say, and any change in hedging language or emphasis versus last time. 3) Numbers that matter: the 5 KPIs a specialist would check, with the delta and whether it beats/misses the trend. 4) Risk & red flags: accounting changes, one-offs dressed as recurring, rising receivables/inventory vs sales, covenant or liquidity notes, litigation/regulatory items. 5) The 3 sharpest questions to ask management (or to answer before I act). 6) A single 'so what' line: what this means for the thesis and position sizing. Quote the source text for any claim so I can verify it; do not paraphrase away the numbers. Here is the document: [PASTE 10-K SECTION / EARNINGS TRANSCRIPT] Rules: Do not invent, estimate, or extrapolate any figure — if a number is not in what I give you, write "not provided" and flag it. Mark every claim I should verify externally before relying on it. Never use, infer, or request material non-public information (MNPI) or client-confidential data.
Earnings-call transcript signal map
You have a transcript and want the buy-side signal — tone shifts, what changed, what was dodged.
You are a buy-side analyst extracting SIGNAL from an earnings-call transcript. I will paste it. Produce: 1. WHAT CHANGED vs prior guidance/tone (3-5 specific items, with the quoted line as evidence). 2. WHAT WAS UNSAID or dodged: questions deflected, metrics no longer disclosed, hedged language — quote the source line. 3. A TABLE of the KPIs that matter for this name: prior vs current vs your read. 4. The 3 things to VERIFY in the filing before you trust the narrative. 5. Net SO-WHAT for the thesis in 2 sentences. Quote the transcript for every claim. Do not infer a number that wasn't stated; write "not disclosed" instead. Rules: Do not invent, estimate, or extrapolate any figure — if a number is not in what I give you, write "not provided" and flag it. Mark every claim I should verify externally before relying on it. Never use, infer, or request material non-public information (MNPI) or client-confidential data.
Bull / bear / base scenario tree with kill criteria
You want a structured scenario framework for a name with explicit probabilities and what would kill the thesis.
You are a PM building a scenario framework for [TICKER]. I will give the thesis and key drivers. Produce: 1. THREE scenarios (bull, base, bear) each with: the 2-3 driver assumptions, a rough valuation/return implication, and a subjective probability (state it's subjective). 2. A TABLE mapping each driver to the scenario it most affects. 3. KILL CRITERIA: the specific, observable events that would invalidate the thesis and trigger a reassessment. 4. The single variable the outcome is most sensitive to. Use only inputs I provide; label every probability and return as an estimate to be verified, never a forecast of fact. Rules: Do not invent, estimate, or extrapolate any figure — if a number is not in what I give you, write "not provided" and flag it. Mark every claim I should verify externally before relying on it. Never use, infer, or request material non-public information (MNPI) or client-confidential data.
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7 more Investment Management prompts in Pro
The full Investment Management set — plus every other desk's prompts, personalized to your role — is part of Pro. Here's what's inside:
Long thesis pre-mortem
Before you size up a long, you want the sharpest bear case and the falsification levels.
You are the smartest short-seller on the other side of my long in [TICKER]. I will give the thesis, entry, and sizing. Produce: 1. The 3 strongest rea
Position sizing + portfolio-fit review
You like an idea and need to decide how big it should be and whether it fits the book.
You are a risk-aware PM reviewing whether and how big to size [TICKER] in a portfolio I describe [current positions/factor/sector exposures, mandate,
Competitive moat + five-forces map
You want a rigorous read on a company's durable competitive advantage, not a marketing story.
You are a buy-side analyst assessing the moat of [COMPANY]. I will paste business facts. Produce: 1. A moat VERDICT: none / narrow / wide, with the sp
Management & capital-allocation scorecard
You want to grade management on the thing that compounds: capital allocation and incentives.
You are an analyst scoring the management team of [COMPANY]. I will give the history/facts (M&A, buybacks, dividends, capex, debt, comp structure, ins
Earnings preview + KPI watch list
A holding reports soon and you want a focused preview of what actually matters to your thesis.
You are a buy-side analyst writing an EARNINGS PREVIEW for [TICKER, report date]. I will give consensus, recent developments, and the thesis. Produce:
13F holdings-change interpretation
A manager's 13F dropped and you want the signal, with the well-known caveats front of mind.
You are an analyst interpreting a 13F filing for [MANAGER]. I will paste the holdings/changes. Produce: 1. The notable NEW positions, ADDS, TRIMS, and
New-name industry primer for a fast ramp
You're picking up a new name/sector and need a structured primer to get to competence fast.
You are a senior analyst briefing me on [SECTOR/INDUSTRY] so I can ramp on a new name. Produce: 1. HOW THE INDUSTRY MAKES MONEY: the value chain, who
Frequently asked
Can ChatGPT analyze a 10-K or earnings call?
Yes, if you paste the primary source rather than asking it to fetch one. Give it the 10-K text or the transcript and prompt for a structured output — business model, segment economics, capital allocation, the five risks that actually matter, and a decision — with every figure cited to a page or section and 'not disclosed' where the data isn't there. The value is compression and structure; you verify the numbers. Educational only, not financial advice.
What's the best AI prompt for an investment thesis?
A pre-mortem beats a cheerleader. The most useful prompt asks the model to argue the strongest bear case against your thesis, surface the assumptions you haven't verified, state what would have to be true for you to be right and how to check each, and name the one data point that should make you exit. It sharpens your own work rather than outsourcing the judgment.
Can AI pick stocks?
No — and any tool that claims it can is selling certainty that doesn't exist. AI is a research accelerant: it synthesizes filings, maps scenarios, and stress-tests theses faster than you can by hand. Position sizing, valuation, and the buy/sell decision are yours. Do your own research and verify every output against the source. This is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security.