For Immediate Release Chicago, IL – April 28, 2016 – Zacks Director of Research Sheraz Mian says, "While growth remains problematic, actual results are turning out to be less bad relative to the low levels to which estimates had fallen ahead of this reporting cycle." Low Expectations Helping Q1 Earnings Picture The following is an excerpt from this week's Earnings Trends article. To access the full article, please click here. The Q1 earnings season is in full swing with results from 209 S&P 500 members accounting for 52.4% of the index’s total market capitalization. While growth remains problematic, actual results are turning out to be less bad relative to the low levels to which estimates had fallen ahead of this reporting cycle. More companies are coming out with positive surprises for both earnings as well as revenues. Importantly, while estimates for the current period (2016 Q2) have started coming down, they are not falling by as much as was the case at the comparable stage in the prior earnings season. Low expectations likely explain the deceleration in the negative revisions pace for Q2 as estimates for this period had already come down over the last four months. Total earnings for the 209 S&P 500 members that have reported results are down -5.5% from the same period last year on -1.6% lower revenues, with 75.6% beating EPS estimates and 56% coming ahead of top-line expectations. The growth pace is notably weaker relative to the 4-quarter and 12-quarter averages, but positive surprises are tracking above historical periods for the same group of companies. One would reasonably expect that the recent decline in the exchange value of the U.S. dollar is helping S&P 500 members on the margin as well, but this preponderance of positive surprises is primarily a function of low expectations. The focus on expectations helps explain the market’s disappointment at Tech sector results from Google’s parent Alphabet (GOOGL), Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT) and others. These companies, particularly Google and Microsoft failed to rise to the expectations that had built up following their blowout results the prior earnings season. In other words, the Tech disappointments are inverse of what is happening this earnings season in most other sectors, with low expectations providing easy-to-beat hurdle rates for most companies. The blended growth picture for Q1, combining the actual results from the 209 that have reported with estimates for the still-to-come 291 index members, shows total earnings declining -8.0% from the same period last year on -1.0% lower revenues. This would be the 4th quarter in a row of earnings declines for the index. Estimates for the current period (2016 Q2) show these declines continuing, with total earnings for the S&P 500 index expected to be down -5.1% from the same period last year -0.8% lower revenues. Q2 estimates have been coming down in recent days, but the magnitude of negative revisions is lower relative to what we experienced in the comparable period in the 2015 Q4 earnings season. Many see the Q1 earnings season as the inflection point for corporate earnings, with the growth picture starting improve from Q2 onwards and turning positive in the back half of the year. The relative more numerous positive surprises and the fewer negative revisions to current-period estimates would support that view. But the proof of this narrative will become clear in the coming days as more companies report Q1 results and provide color on the evolving business picture. To access the full Earnings Trends piece, please click here. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today. Find out What is happening in the stock market today on zacks.com. 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 ALPHABET INC-A (GOOGL): Free Stock Analysis Report APPLE INC (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report MICROSOFT CORP (MSFT): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here.