AI analyst for pennies: 10 prompts for Claude that will replace an expensive stock market expert
The market for analytical services is undergoing a tectonic shift. I have carefully studied a new methodology that can transform the Claude language model into a full-fledged stock market researcher — at the level of leading consulting firms. This involves a set of 10 specialized prompts that structure the process of analyzing a company, from the first introduction to an in-depth assessment of risks and management quality.
The First Five: From General Overview to Valuation
The first prompt assigns Claude the role of a senior analyst, tasking it with preparing a research report accessible to a beginner. It covers the business model, revenue, industry trends, competitors, financial results, valuation, growth drivers, and bull/base/bear scenarios. A key requirement is to rely on recent public sources, clearly separating facts from assumptions.
The second prompt focuses on dissecting the company's latest earnings call: five main takeaways, revenue and margin dynamics, management guidance, management tone, analyst concerns, as well as positive and negative surprises. The prompt generates a table of key metrics with an explanation of why each is important.
The third prompt turns Claude into a skeptical analyst who seeks out red flags in revenue, margins, cash flow, debt, dilution, insider actions, and management language. Each issue is assigned a severity rating, and a total risk score from 1 to 10 is given at the end.
The fourth and fifth prompts are dedicated to competitive advantages and valuation. One assesses the company's "moat" — brand, network effects, switching costs, scale, intellectual property — and compares it with competitors. The second compares the company with peers using multiples (P/E, forward P/E, EV/Revenue, EV/EBITDA) and determines whether it is overvalued, undervalued, or fairly valued.
The Second Five: From DCF Model to a Beginner's Checklist
The sixth prompt helps build realistic assumptions for a discounted cash flow (DCF) model — generating bear, base, and bull scenarios for revenue growth, margins, tax rate, capital expenditures, and discount rate, explaining the logic behind each.
The seventh prompt creates a catalyst calendar for 3, 6, and 12 months: earnings reports, product launches, investor days, regulatory decisions, lawsuits, macro events, management changes, buybacks, and dividends. For each event, it specifies timing, impact, upside and downside risks, confidence level, and source.
The eighth prompt evaluates the management team: the CEO's track record, the CFO's credibility, forecast accuracy, transparency, capital allocation, acquisitions, insider ownership, and compensation.
The ninth prompt simulates an investment committee debate: Claude creates a bull analyst and a bear analyst, and a neutral judge explains at the end which position is more strongly supported.
The tenth prompt turns Claude into a patient teacher who explains the company in simple terms: what it does, how it makes money, what could go right and wrong, and its profitability, growth, debt, and valuation. A checklist for beginners is generated at the end.
My Professional Opinion
This approach is a powerful tool for structuring research, especially for retail investors who lack access to expensive analytical reports. However, it is important to remember: Claude is a tool, not an oracle. Final verification of the data, especially figures from financial statements, and making investment decisions remain the responsibility of the human. None of the prompts provide buy or sell recommendations — and that is correct. Use this methodology as a framework, but always double-check the facts.