AI Financial Report Analysis: Read Earnings PDFs Faster (2026 Guide)
Earnings reports and 10-Ks are long for one reason: they’re packed with tables.
Most people don’t need to read every page. They need to answer:
- did the business improve or deteriorate?
- what changed (and why)?
- what looks risky or abnormal?
This post is a practical workflow (Eyesme example) to extract signal quickly.
The 4 outputs you want
- Key metrics snapshot: revenue, margins, net income
- Cash flow health: operating cash flow, capex, FCF
- Balance sheet risk: debt structure, liquidity, working capital signals
- Anomalies + questions: what to investigate next
10-minute workflow
Step 1: Capture the “must-see” tables
- income statement
- cash flow statement
- balance sheet
- notes/MD&A for explanations
Step 2: Extract structure (not just text)
Ask for a table output (YoY/QoQ) and key ratios.
Step 3: Anomaly checks (high ROI)
Ask:
- “What drove the change in net income? Rank drivers by impact.”
- “Is operating cash flow diverging from net income? Why?”
- “Any one-time items or accounting changes?”
- “Any unusual changes in receivables/inventory/prepaids?”
Step 4: Generate a question checklist
Ask for 5–10 follow-up questions for the call/meeting.
FAQ
Can AI give investment advice?
No. Use AI for extraction, structure, and comparison. You own the decision.
Bottom line
Use AI to do the table-heavy work, then spend your time on judgement.