Since the first-quarter results were announced on Apr 30, Southwestern Energy Company SWN has seen a 3% rally in share price. The upstream energy firm’s better-than-expected quarterly earnings and favorable second-quarter production guidance despite the coronavirus pandemic lent support to the stock.Q1 Earnings BeatSouthwestern Energy reported first-quarter 2020 adjusted earnings of 10 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 7 cents. However, the bottom line declined from the year-ago profit of 27 cents.Quarterly operating revenues of $592 million missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $641 million and declined from $990 million in first-quarter 2019.The earnings beat was supported by higher gas equivalent production, partially offset by lower average realized commodity prices.Southwestern Energy Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Southwestern Energy Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Southwestern Energy Company QuoteTotal Production IncreasesThe company’s total first-quarter production increased to 201 billion cubic feet equivalent (Bcfe) from 182 Bcfe a year ago. Gas production in the quarter was 156 Bcf compared with the year-ago level of 143 Bcf.Moreover, oil production surged to 1,399 thousand barrels (MBbls) from 854 MBbls in the year-ago quarter. Natural gas liquids production in the quarter under review was recorded at 6,128 MBbls, higher than the year-ago level of 5,603 MBbls. It is to be noted that almost 77.6% of its volume mix constituted of natural gas.Average Realized Prices FallThe company’s average realized gas price in the quarter, excluding derivatives, fell to $1.53 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf) from $2.95 a year ago. Oil was sold at $36.72 per barrel compared with the year-earlier level of $45.48. Natural gas liquids were sold at $8.16 per barrel, lower than $14.45 in the year-ago period.ExpensesOn a per-Mcfe basis, lease operating expenses were 96 cents compared with the prior-year level of 90 cents. However, general and administrative expenses per unit of production were 11 cents, down from 19 cents in the year-ago quarter.FinancialsSouthwestern Energy’s total capital expenditure during the first quarter was $86 million.As of Mar 31, 2020, the company’s cash and cash equivalents were $5 million. Long-term debt was $2,279 million, which represents a debt-to-capitalization of 58.8%.GuidanceThe upstream energy player expects production volumes in the June quarter of 2020 to be mostly unaffected, thanks to improvement in well performance.Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to ConsiderSouthwestern Energycurrently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Other prospective stocks in the energy sector are Murphy USA Inc MUSA, Key Energy Services, Inc. KEGX and CNX Resources Corporation CNX. While Key Energy sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Murphy USA and CNX Resources carry a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.Murphy USA is likely to see earnings growth of 7% in the next five years.Key Energy is likely to see bottom-line growth of 97.2% in 2020.CNX Resources has witnessed upward estimate revisions for 2020 bottom line in the past 60 days.The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of AllLast year, it generated $24 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $77.6 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce ""the world's first trillionaires,"" but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >>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 Southwestern Energy Company (SWN): Free Stock Analysis Report CNX Resources Corporation (CNX): Free Stock Analysis Report Murphy USA Inc (MUSA): Free Stock Analysis Report Key Energy Services Inc (KEGX): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here.