DST Systems Inc. DST is set to report first-quarter fiscal 2016 results on Apr 21. Last quarter, the company posted a positive earnings surprise of 3.09%. Let us see how things are shaping up for this announcement.Factors this Past QuarterDST reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results, wherein both the top line and the bottom line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate.Going forward, we believe that DST Systems’ business volume and massive scale of operation in Financial Services will attract new customers. Moreover, we expect steady contributions from acquisitions to support revenue growth. Continued share buybacks and dividend payments are the other encouraging factors.On the other hand, decreasing organic revenue growth, tough competition from International Business Machines Corporation IBM and Fiserv Inc., and a high debt burden remain concerns.Earnings WhispersOur proven model does not conclusively show that DST will beat earnings this quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.Negative Zacks ESP: This is because the Most Accurate estimate stands at $1.38 per share while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $1.46. This equates to a difference of -5.48%.Zacks Rank: DST has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). We caution against stocks with Zacks Rank #4 and #5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions momentum.Stocks to ConsiderHere are some companies, which you may consider, as our model shows that they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:Silicon Motion Technology Corp. SIMO with Earnings ESP of +7.27% and a Zacks Rank #1SunCoke Energy Inc. SXC with Earnings ESP of +150.00% and a Zacks Rank #1Want 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 INTL BUS MACH (IBM): Free Stock Analysis Report DST SYSTEMS (DST): Free Stock Analysis Report SILICON MOTION (SIMO): Free Stock Analysis Report SUNCOKE ENERGY (SXC): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research