@SJCapitalInvest: <i>If you enjoy this piece, pl...
If you enjoy this piece, please see my other Article: Guide to Asymmetric Investing
There is also an accompanying piece, the AI Prompt Cheat Sheet. I do however recommend reading this first.
Foreword: Why You are Better with AI
I have been open since I started posting that AI and specifically Gemini play a key role in my investment research process. It does not make decisions for me, but it allows me to make better and faster decisions.
I believe (1) breadth; the amount of investment opportunities I can review, and (2) depth; the amount and type of information I am able to pull and review and, (3) decisioning speed; how fast I can come to a conclusion, directly correlate to outsized returns. This is where Gemini gives me an edge.
There are moments in life when you have an opportunity to be an early adopter and gain first mover advantage before it becomes the norm.
This is one of those moment. Don't miss it.
(I obviously leveraged Gemini to help create this report)
Table of Contents
Introduction
Investing requires processing a massive amount of information: financial filings, earnings transcripts, macro news, and technical charts. This is where institutions and firms historically dominated retail.
A.I. levels the playing field.
This guide documents the specific workflows, prompts, and best practices for using Gemini to streamline investment research. It is designed for clarity and broad utility, regardless of your investing style.
Why I Pay for Gemini Advanced (The ROI Calculation)
Is the $20/month subscription worth it?
If I am honest I cannot believe this only costs $20. This could 5x this and I wouldn't blink. For $240 a year, I get an assistant, analyst, researcher, thought partner, data visualization expert and so much more that works 24/7, never complains, and reads faster than any human.
If this tool helps me avoid one bad trade or find one winner I would have otherwise missed, the subscription pays for itself for the next half century.
The "Pro" Features That Matter for Investing:
While the free version is capable, I use Gemini Advanced for four specific reasons that are critical for stock research:
What it is:This is essentially unlimited professional analyst level reports on command. It doesn't just do one search; it searches, reads, realizes it needs more info, searches again, and synthesizes a massive report.
Why it matters:I can wake up, type a ticker I've never heard of, and get a 10-page "Investment Memo" that covers every competitor, risk, and catalyst. What would have previously taken me potentially a week to put together and digest is in my hands formatted to my custom standards in 5 minutes.
What it is:The "memory" of the model.
Why it matters:People ask me all the time what my prompt is, the reality is it's more about the existing data set in the model that I have been consistently building. I can upload five years of 10-K filings, three earnings transcripts, and a whitepaper all at once. The free version often hits a limit and "forgets" the beginning of the document. The Pro version reads the entire library simultaneously.
What it is:The ability to drag-and-drop Excel sheets, PDFs, and images directly into the chat.
Why it matters: This is absolutely massive. If you have seen the Chart+Macro updates I post that have historically been very accurate, its due to my abilty to drop huge amounts of unstructured data into Gemini quickly without regard to file type. I don't have to copy-paste text. I drop the raw PDF of the Earnings Call and say, "Find the contradiction" or "how does this impact the overall outlook.
What it is: A smarter, more reasoning-heavy model compared to the faster "Flash" model used in the free tier.
Why it matters: I need logic, not just speed. If this is even marginally more powerful and leading to more accurate outcomes then I will pay for it. The edge here could be the difference between identifying $TE at $2.90 or $7.50
1. Foundation: Building Contextual Memory (The "One Chat" Rule)
Note* ❗️Everything in Gemini should be done in Thinking or Pro mode, do not use fast answer❗️
Before you type your first prompt, you need to understand how the tool "learns."
The Strategy: Gemini performs significantly better when it has context.
I cannot overstate how important it is to build out a deep history for a ticker broad context for accurate results. In my experience a new thread almost starts from zero, most information and context from other chats is not pulled over.
If you open a new chat window for every question, you are effectively resetting the AI's memory to zero. You must maintain a dedicated, ongoing chat thread for every major stock you track.
Old chats are saved unless you erase them, go back and pick up where you left off each time.
The Prompt to Initialize a Thread:
"I am starting a dedicated research thread for [TICKER]. From now on, retain all context regarding this stock in this chat. To establish a baseline, search Yahoo Finance and summarize the last 3 major news events and the most recent earnings top-line numbers for [TICKER]. Do not hallucinate data; use the search tool."
Why this works: This sets the "ground rules" for the chat instance. It forces the AI to load its context window with accurate, recent data immediately, creating a solid foundation for future questions.
2. Foundation: Ensuring Data Accuracy (Avoiding the "Hallucination Trap")
The most critical rule of using AI for finance: Garbage in, garbage out.
My $TE Mistake: I once asked Gemini for consensus earnings expectations for a ticker I cover, $TE. I took the number at face value and posted it. I was wrong. The number was a hallucination, a mix of old data and bad math. I learned the hard way that Gemini is a prediction engine, not a database.
The Solution: You must direct Gemini to the specific source of truth. Do not rely on its internal memory for live numbers.
The Prompt to Use:
"Search Yahoo Finance and Seeking Alpha Transcripts for the Q3 2024 earnings of [TICKER]. Extract the exact revenue guidance range provided by the CFO. Quote the specific sentence where this guidance was given."
Why this works: Asking it to "quote the sentence" forces the AI to find the actual text in the document, making it nearly impossible for it to make up a number. It is very good at math so as long as it is starting with the right inputs the output is reliable.
3. Analysis: Starting from Zero (The Deep Research Report)
This is the first thing I do when I discover a new company once the business metrics have peaked my interests. Before I look at a chart or a valuation table, I need the "Lay of the Land."
The Goal: Go from "I don't know this stock" to "I understand the business model, the moat, and the asymmetric angle" in one shot.
The Problem: Researching a new sector (e.g., Quantum Computing or Biotech) usually requires reading 10 different tabs to understand the product and the jargon.
The Solution: Use Gemini's Deep Research capability to generate a comprehensive "Initiation of Coverage" report.
The Prompt to Use (make sure you are in deep research mode):
"Generate a comprehensive Deep Research Report on [TICKER]. Breakdown the following 4 areas:1. The Business Model: Explain exactly how they make money and what their core product is in plain English.2. The Industry & Moat: Who are their top 3 competitors? Does [TICKER] have a unique technological advantage or patent that the competitors lack?3. The Catalyst: Search recent news for upcoming product launches, regulatory approvals, or partnerships.4. The Asymmetry Check: Based on the above, does this stock display characteristics of an asymmetric bet (low valuation floor vs. high growth ceiling)? Why or why not?"
Why this works: This prompt forces the AI to synthesize qualitative data (the "story") to see if it aligns with the quantitative data (the numbers). It helps you really wrap your head around a company in a short amount of time.
4. Analysis: Finding and Comparing Company Valuations
This is where I find out if a company has an attractive valuation and can offer increased upside.
The Goal: Quickly assess if a company is expensive or cheap relative to its peers without manually building a spreadsheet and doing tons of data pulls.
The Prompt to Use:
"Search Yahoo Finance. Create a relative valuation table for [TICKER] comparing it to [COMPETITOR 1] and [COMPETITOR 2]. Include columns for: P/S ratio, EV/EBITDA, Gross Margin, and YoY Revenue Growth. Rank them by lowest valuation relative to growth."
Why this works: It standardizes the data. You get a direct, side-by-side view of the metrics that matter, allowing you to spot outliers immediately.
Your output here will look like this, its easy to see how this leapfrogs your ability to compare investments:
5. Analysis: Testing Your Thesis for Holes
We all suffer from bias and emotional connection. When we like something the tendency can be to defend it rather than to stress test the thesis. AI can break this.
The Goal: Eliminate confirmation bias by forcing the AI to identify risks you might be ignoring.
The Prompt to Use:
"Act as a skeptic. Write a 3-point risk assessment for [TICKER] focusing specifically on accounting irregularities, customer concentration, or competitive threats. Search Seeking Alpha bear articles to inform your view."
Why this works: It detaches you from the emotional aspect of the trade. If Gemini highlights a risk you weren't aware of (e.g., "40% of revenue comes from one client"), you can pause and investigate before deploying capital.
6. Analysis: The "Translator" (Decoding Corporate Speak)
Companies love to put lipstick on a pig. They don't say "Sales are tanking." They say, "We are experiencing elongated sales cycles due to macroeconomic headwinds."
The Goal: Cut through the jargon and find out what is really going on and how it impacts your thesis.
The Prompt to Use:
"I am pasting the 'Risk Factors' section from the latest 10-K below. Rewrite the top 3 risks in plain English. Strip away the corporate jargon. What are they actually admitting is going wrong?"
Why this works: It removes the cognitive load of decoding legal text. You get the real talk immediately, allowing you to sense the tone of the business and what to watch out for..
7. Context: Researching Macro Trends and Policy Impacts
If you follow me you probably figured out that most of my investments are based on macro conditions and momentum, not necessrily my favorite companies.
The Goal: Understand how broad government policies (like tariffs or Section 45X credits) specifically impact the companies in your portfolio.
The Prompt to Use:
"Search the Federal Register and recent trade updates. If US tariffs on [PRODUCT/SECTOR] increase, how does that specifically impact the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) for [TICKER]? Does this benefit or hurt their competitive position against international peers?"
Why this works: It bridges the gap between macro news and micro financial impact.
8. Advanced: Synthesizing Diverse Data (The "Data Dump")
This is how I get my technical and macro analysis I post on X. This is the "Power User" move: Combining text, images, and logic.
The Goal: Create a holistic projection by flooding the system with disparate data sources simultaneously.
The Workflow:
The Prompt to Use:
"I have uploaded three charts showing different timeframes for [TICKER]. I am also pasting the recent trading volume data below. Combine this visual data with a search for [RECENT GEOPOLITICAL EVENT], also include headlines of the day from CNBC. Given the technical setup in the images and the macro pressure from the event, what is the most likely projection for the next week and the next few months?"
Why this works: To me this is the real superpower of Gemini. It isn't just "reading"; it is looking at the chart patterns, cross-referencing them with the volume anomalies you provided, and overlaying the political context.
9. Advanced: Thread Pulling (Investigating Incentives)
Putting the bigger picture together for you. Moving from "Data Analysis" to "Detective Work."
The Goal: Uncover hidden agendas by connecting seemingly unrelated events between companies, banks, and insiders.
The Case Study: I once noticed a bank (Roth) initiated coverage on a stock ($TE) with a high price target. A week later, they hosted the company for an investor "fireside chat." I asked Gemini to search for the relationship. It revealed the bank was also positioning the stock for a capital raise. Gemini predicted the bank would defend the stock price until the offering closed, then raise their price target shortly after the fireside chat.
That is literally exactly what happened.
The Prompt to Use:
"Review the timeline of interactions between [BANK NAME] and [TICKER] over the last 6 months. Look for coverage initiations, conference invitations, and public comments. Is there a pattern suggesting these two may be working together? What else can we expect in a relationship like this and what does it signal. Also look into the specific analyst covering the stock and their background and how may be relevant."
10. Advanced: Call Options Pricing Analysis
To be clear, I am not an options expert. There are many ways you could use this for more advanced strategies. This should spark ideas.
The Goal: Identify which specific strike price and expiration date offer the best risk/reward profile without manually calculating the Greeks for every line item.
The Problem: Option chains are dense spreadsheets. It is difficult to eyeball the "Implied Volatility (IV) Skew" or identify where the options are overpriced vs. underpriced relative to the expected move.
The Solution: Screenshot the option chain (showing Strike, Bid/Ask, IV, and Delta) and ask Gemini to rank them.
You might need to send multiple images to capture all info.
This is the type of screenshot you need. It should include Expiration date, strikes, last sale, bid, ask, spread, volume and open interest. Remember, the more context the better.
The Workflow:
The Prompt to Use:
"I have uploaded the call option chain for [TICKER]. I am bullish and looking for a [TIMEFRAME] trade. Analyze the pricing. Which strike price has the best upside potential if the stock rises 15%? Which strike is the 'safest' Deep-ITM play with the least premium decay (Theta) risk?"
Why this works: Gemini reads the grid instantly. It checks the premiums against the Delta and IV, identifying the "sweet spot" where you get maximum exposure for minimum cost.
Summary
Listen, this is not everything you can do with Gemini. I am still playing around and learning new features. The takeaway here should be that this thing is flexible very easily accessible, and will have an outsized impact on your ability to beat the market.
It has absolutely made me a better investor simply due to the way I can break down information and quickly come to conclusions.
Hope this was helpful and don't forget to checkout the AI Prompt Cheat Sheet.
Stay safe out there
S&J
W/Accompanying Prompt Cheat Sheet
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