Loews Corp. L is set to report first-quarter 2016 results on May 2. Last quarter, it posted a negative earnings surprise of 41.03%. Let’s see how things are shaping up for this announcement.Factors Influencing This Past QuarterDiamond Offshore’s DO results are likely to suffer from lower contract drilling revenues, lowered exploration and production budgets, an influx of new rig deliveries and weak oil prices.A soft interest rate environment may have also come in the way of the desired performance.Loews Hotels’ results are expected to have remained soft on account of operational challenges at the properties.However, CNA Financial CNA is expected to have delivered well given the underlying strength in its businesses. Riding on favorable loss development and improving underlying loss ratio, the commercial lines business is expected to have performed well. The company estimates combined ratio improvement of 800 basis points in 2016.An added boost to the bottom line is expected to come from continued share buyback.With respect to the surprise trend, Loews missed expectations in each of the last four quarters, with an average negative surprise of 23.98%.The company’s share price has been fluctuating over the last few days. We wait to see how the stock reacts to the quarter’s results.Earnings WhispersOur proven model does not conclusively show that Loews is likely to beat estimates this quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.Zacks ESP: Loews has an ESP of -27.08%. This is because the Most Accurate estimate stands at 35 cents while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at 48 cents per share.Zacks Rank: Loews has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). Sell-rated stocks (#4 or 5) should never be considered going into an earnings announcement.Stock to ConsiderHere is a multiline insurer that has the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:American Financial Group Inc. AFG with an Earnings ESP of +0.60% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company will release first-quarter earnings results on May 2.Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report LOEWS CORP (L): Free Stock Analysis Report CNA FINL CORP (CNA): Free Stock Analysis Report AMER FINL GROUP (AFG): Free Stock Analysis Report DIAMOND OFFSHOR (DO): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research