5 Claude Prompts for Portfolio Review & Client Reporting

You are a financial advisor writing a personalized quarterly portfolio review letter. Write in a warm, professional tone that builds trust and transparency. The letter should feel like it was written specifically for this client, not generated from a template.

<client-data>
- Client: Retired couple, ages 71 and 68
- Review period: Q4 2025 (October - December)
- Relationship tenure: 8 years
- Portfolio value end of quarter: $1.85M (up from $1.78M)
- Portfolio return: +3.8% for the quarter
- YTD return: +11.2%
- Benchmark (50/50 stock/bond): +2.9% for the quarter, +8.7% YTD
- Distributions taken: $18,500/quarter ($74K/year, 4.0% withdrawal rate)
- Asset allocation: 50% equities, 35% fixed income, 10% alternatives, 5% cash
- Notable holdings performance: Dividend equity fund +4.5%, municipal bond fund +1.2%, real estate fund +5.8%
- Changes made: Rebalanced equities after strong run, increased municipal bond allocation for tax efficiency
- RMD status: Both taking RMDs, amounts on track for the year
</client-data>

<instructions>
Structure:
1. Warm opening referencing the quarter and their relationship
2. Performance summary in plain language (3-4 sentences)
3. What drove results (attribution in accessible language)
4. Changes we made and why (1 paragraph)
5. Market context (2-3 sentences, not a Wall Street essay)
6. Looking ahead (forward-looking but no predictions)
7. Invitation to meet and personal sign-off

Length: 450-550 words
Do not use percentage signs more than 6 times — use phrases like "just under four percent" where natural.
</instructions>

Write a client communication to send during a period of market volatility. This should be calming, informative, and demonstrate that you are actively monitoring the situation.

<market-context>
- Trigger: S&P 500 has declined 8% over the past two weeks
- Primary driver: Unexpected inflation data sparked fears of renewed rate hikes
- Bond market: 10-year Treasury yield jumped from 4.1% to 4.6%
- International markets: Also declined, though less severely (MSCI EAFE -5%)
- VIX (volatility index): Elevated at 28, up from 15 two weeks ago
- My client base: Primarily moderate-risk retirees and pre-retirees
- Our positioning: Portfolios are diversified, slightly underweight equities relative to benchmarks, overweight short-duration bonds
</market-context>

<instructions>
Structure:
1. Subject line: Calm, direct (not clickbait, not dismissive)
2. Acknowledge what happened — do not pretend the decline did not occur
3. Explain why in 3-4 sentences a non-investor understands
4. Historical context — how common are these events?
5. How your portfolios are positioned — why the current allocation makes sense
6. What you are doing (or not doing) and why
7. Invitation to talk — open door without being pushy

Length: 300-400 words
Tone: Steady, transparent, confident but not cavalier
</instructions>

<avoid>
- "Don't worry" or any dismissive language
- Predicting when the market will recover
- Technical jargon (basis points, duration, yield curve inversion)
- Anything that sounds like you wrote it before looking at their specific situation
</avoid>

Write a year-end portfolio performance summary for a de-identified client. This is the most important piece of client reporting each year — it should be thorough, clear, and forward-looking.

<annual-data>
- Client: Business owner, age 55, single
- Portfolio value Jan 1: $920K
- Portfolio value Dec 31: $1.08M
- Total contributions: $55K (max 401k + backdoor Roth + taxable)
- Investment return: $105K (+11.4%)
- Benchmark (70/30): +10.1%
- Allocation: 65% equities, 20% fixed income, 10% alternatives, 5% cash
- Best performing: US small-cap value (+18%), international developed (+14%)
- Worst performing: Emerging markets (-2%), long-term bonds (-3%)
- Tax-loss harvesting: Realized $12K in losses to offset capital gains
- Roth conversion: Completed $35K conversion in December
- Milestones: Crossed $1M total portfolio value for the first time
</annual-data>

<instructions>
Structure:
1. Opening: Celebrate the milestone year (crossing $1M is significant)
2. Performance overview with attribution
3. Key strategic moves (tax-loss harvesting, Roth conversion)
4. What worked and what didn't (be honest about underperformers)
5. Year-ahead outlook and priorities
6. Updated progress toward retirement goal

Include a simple performance comparison table (portfolio vs. benchmark).
Length: 500-650 words
Tone: Celebratory but grounded — big milestone, but the work continues
</instructions>

Write a performance attribution summary that explains portfolio returns by asset class and investment selection. This is for a sophisticated client who wants to understand the "why" behind their numbers.

<attribution-data>
- Review period: Full year 2025
- Total portfolio return: +9.8%
- Equity sleeve (60% of portfolio): +13.2%
  - US Large Cap (30%): +15.1% (benchmark S&P 500: +14.5%) — slight overperformance from value tilt
  - US Small/Mid Cap (10%): +16.8% (benchmark Russell 2500: +14.2%) — strong active manager selection
  - International Developed (12%): +10.5% (benchmark MSCI EAFE: +9.8%) — currency hedging helped
  - Emerging Markets (8%): +2.1% (benchmark MSCI EM: +3.5%) — underperformed, China exposure drag
- Fixed Income sleeve (30% of portfolio): +4.2%
  - Investment Grade Bonds (15%): +3.8% (benchmark Agg: +3.2%) — short duration positioning helped
  - Municipal Bonds (10%): +4.5% — tax-equivalent yield of 6.8% at client's bracket
  - High Yield (5%): +5.8% (benchmark HY Index: +6.2%) — slight underperformance, higher quality tilt
- Alternatives sleeve (10% of portfolio): +7.5%
  - Real estate (5%): +8.2% — recovery in commercial property valuations
  - Managed futures (5%): +6.8% — trend-following added diversification value
</attribution-data>

<instructions>
Structure:
1. Executive summary (3 sentences — what drove returns in plain language)
2. Asset class review (each sleeve with context)
3. What worked and why (top 3 contributors)
4. What underperformed and why (bottom 2, with forward-looking view)
5. Portfolio positioning commentary (how allocation decisions impacted results)

Tone: Analytical but accessible. This client is sophisticated but still wants you to explain the "so what" — not just the numbers.
Length: 400-500 words
</instructions>

Write a welcome and initial portfolio positioning letter for a new client whose assets have just been transferred and invested according to the agreed-upon plan.

<new-client-data>
- Client: Married couple, ages 42 and 40, both professionals
- Assets transferred: $380K from previous advisor (mix of mutual funds and individual stocks)
- New contributions: $25K cash from savings account
- Total invested: $405K
- Investment Policy Statement summary: Growth-oriented, 15+ year horizon, high risk tolerance
- Target allocation: 80% equities (40% US, 20% international, 10% small cap, 10% emerging), 15% fixed income, 5% alternatives
- Changes from previous portfolio: Replaced high-fee mutual funds (avg 0.85% ER) with low-cost index and institutional funds (avg 0.12% ER). Sold concentrated stock position in former employer (was 22% of portfolio). Diversified across asset classes.
- Tax impact: Realized $8K in capital gains from restructuring (unavoidable due to concentration risk), offset by $3K in harvested losses from other positions
- Fee reduction: Annual cost savings of approximately $2,900 from lower expense ratios
</new-client-data>

<instructions>
Structure:
1. Welcome and confirmation that assets are invested
2. Summary of what was done and why (portfolio restructuring rationale)
3. Fee savings highlighted (this validates their decision to switch advisors)
4. Tax impact of the transition (transparent about gains realized)
5. What to expect going forward (reporting cadence, communication)
6. Next steps

Tone: Confident, welcoming, and transparent. This is their first experience with you — set the tone for the relationship.
Length: 400-500 words
</instructions>