Pinnacle West Capital Corporation PNW will release first-quarter 2016 financial results before the market opens on Apr 29. In the prior quarter, this utility company reported a positive earnings surprise of 37.04%. Let’s see how things are shaping up at the company prior to this announcement.Factors to Consider This QuarterThe ongoing improvement in economic conditions in its service territories is continuing to have a positive impact on Pinnacle West Capital’s performance. Increase in consumer spending and strength in the housing market will help the company to sustain this performance.However, the planned outage of its Four Corners Unit 5 in the first quarter of 2016 is likely to lower earnings by 13 cents from the comparable prior-year period.Surprise History The above chart indicates that Pinnacle West Capital delivered a positive earnings surprise in only one of the last four quarters. The average positive earnings surprise was 0.92%.Earnings WhispersOur proven model does not conclusively show that Pinnacle West Capital is likely to beat estimates this quarter. That 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. This is not the case here.Zacks ESP: The Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate are both pegged at 13 cents, resulting in 0.00% ESP.Zacks Rank: Though Pinnacle West Capital’s Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of the ESP, its 0.00% ESP makes a beat uncertain this quarter.We caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or #5 (Sell rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.Stocks to ConsiderLet's focus on some utility players, which have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.IdaCorp, Inc. IDA has an Earnings ESP of +7.27% and a Zacks Rank #3. It is expected to report earnings on Apr 28.Consolidated Edison, Inc. ED has an Earnings ESP of +0.83% and a Zacks Rank #3. It is slated to report earnings on May 5.TECO Energy, Inc. TE has an Earnings ESP of +3.7% and a Zacks Rank #3. It is expected to report earnings on May 5.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 TECO ENERGY (TE): Free Stock Analysis Report PINNACLE WEST (PNW): Free Stock Analysis Report CONSOL EDISON (ED): Free Stock Analysis Report IDACORP INC (IDA): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research