Have you been eager to see how Loews Corporation L performed in the first quarter in comparison with the market expectations? Let’s quickly scan through the key facts from this OH-based multiline insurer’s earnings release this morning.An Earnings ImprovementLoews reported earnings per share of $1.27 per share, increasing 42.7% year over year.Loews Corporation Price and EPS Surprise Loews Corporation Price and EPS Surprise | Loews Corporation QuoteHow Was the Estimate Revision Trend?You should note that there was no earnings momentum for Loews prior to the earnings release. Loews has a decent earnings surprise history. The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the last four trailing four quarters.Key Takeaways• Operating revenue of $3.7 billion decreased 4.3% year over year.• Total expenses increased 2.3% year over year to $3.2 billion.• Book value as of Mar 31, 2019 was $63.59 per share, up 7.3% from $62.16 as of Dec 31, 2018.• Repurchased $322 million worth shares.What Zacks Rank SaysLoews carries Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). However, since the latest earnings performance is yet to be reflected in the estimate revisions, the rank is subject to change. Now it all depends on what sense the just-released report makes to the analysts. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Check back later for our full write up on this L earnings report later!Today's Best Stocks from Zacks Would you like to see the updated picks from our best market-beating strategies? From 2017 through 2018, while the S&P 500 gained +15.8%, five of our screens returned +38.0%, +61.3%, +61.6%, +68.1%, and +98.3%.This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. From 2000 – 2018, while the S&P averaged +4.8% per year, our top strategies averaged up to +56.2% per year.See their latest picks free >>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 Corporation (L): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research