Morning Note
Workflow
Step 1: Overnight Developments
Scan for relevant events across coverage universe:
Earnings & Guidance
- Any coverage companies reporting overnight or pre-market?
- Earnings surprises (beat/miss on revenue, EPS, key metrics)
- Guidance changes (raised, lowered, maintained)
News & Events
- M&A announcements or rumors
- Management changes
- Product launches or regulatory decisions
- Analyst upgrades/downgrades from competitors
- Macro data or policy changes affecting the sector
Market Context
- Overnight futures / pre-market moves
- Sector ETF performance
- Relevant commodity or currency moves
- Key economic data releases today
Step 2: Morning Note Format
Keep it tight — a morning note should be readable in 2 minutes:
[Date] Morning Note — [Analyst Name] [Sector Coverage]
Top Call: [Headline — the one thing PMs need to hear]
- 2-3 sentences on the key development and why it matters
- Stock impact: price target, rating reiteration/change
Overnight/Pre-Market Developments
- [Company A]: One-line summary of earnings/news + our take
- [Company B]: One-line summary + our take
- [Sector/Macro]: Relevant sector-wide development
Key Events Today
- [Time]: [Company] earnings call
- [Time]: Economic data release (expectations vs. our view)
- [Time]: Conference or investor day
Trade Ideas (if any)
- [Long/Short] [Company]: 1-2 sentence thesis + catalyst
- Risk: What would make this wrong
Step 3: Quick Takes on Earnings
If a coverage company reported, provide a quick reaction:
Our Take: 2-3 sentences — is this good or bad for the stock? Does it change our thesis?
Action: Maintain / Upgrade / Downgrade rating? Adjust price target?
Step 4: Output
- Markdown text for email/Slack distribution
- Word document if formal distribution is needed
- Keep to 1 page max — PMs and traders won't read more
Important Notes
- Be opinionated — morning notes that just summarize news without a view are useless
- Lead with the most important thing — don't bury the headline
- "No news" is a valid morning note — say "nothing material overnight, maintaining positioning"
- Distinguish between actionable events (earnings, M&A) and noise (minor analyst notes, non-events)
- Time-stamp your takes — if you're writing at 6am, note that pre-market may change by open
- If you're wrong, own it in the next morning note — credibility matters more than being right every time