We are in the middle of the first-quarter earnings season. This week is the second busiest of this reporting cycle, as nearly 1,300 companies are slated to report their quarterly financial numbers. Earnings results are so far better than expected. Among the corporate giants lined up to report this week, quite a few returned more than the market's benchmark — the S&P 500 Index — in the last quarter. Investment in such stocks with a favorable Zacks Rank and a good chance of beating on earnings should drive their stock prices in the near term. Q1 Earnings Results So Far As of Apr 26, 229 companies on the S&P 500 Index reported their financial numbers. Total earnings for these index members are up 2.8% from the same period last year on 3.3% higher revenues, with 78.2% beating EPS estimates and 59.8% beating revenue estimates. At present, total earnings of the S&P 500 Index in first-quarter 2024 are expected to be up 3.8% on 3.7% higher revenues. This follows the 6.8% earnings growth on 4% higher revenues in fourth-quarter 2023 and 3.8% earnings growth on 2.2% higher revenues in third-quarter 2023. Our Top Picks We have narrowed our search to five large-cap stocks (market capital > $10 billion) that are set to beat on earnings today after the closing bell. These stocks provided higher returns than the S&P 500 in the first quarter. Each of these stocks carries either a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) and has a positive Earnings ESP. Our research shows that for stocks with the combination of a Zacks Rank #3 or better and a positive Earnings ESP, the chance of an earnings beat is as high as 70%. These stocks are anticipated to appreciate after their earnings release. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before ...