Regency Centers Corporation ( REG - Analyst Report ) – a real estate investment trust (REIT) – is expected to beat expectations when it reports fourth-quarter 2012 results after the closing bell tomorrow, Wednesday, Jan 30.

Why a Likely Positive Surprise?

Our proven model shows that Regency is likely to beat earnings since it has the appropriate combination of the following two key ingredients:

Positive Zacks ESP: Earnings ESP (Read: Zacks Earnings ESP: A Better Method), which represents the difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is +1.72%. This indicates a likely positive earnings surprise.

Zacks Rank #3 (Hold): Regency’s Zacks Rank of 3 increases the predictive power of its ESP. The combination of its Zacks Rank and Earnings ESP makes us confident of a positive earnings surprise in the to-be-reported quarter.

Stocks with Zacks Ranks of #1, #2 and #3 have significantly higher chances of beating the earnings. The sell rated stocks (#4 and #5) should never be considered as those going into an earnings announcement.

Key Earnings Drivers

Regency is actively riding on the growth trajectory and is enthusiastically spreading its footprints in high-income and high-barrier markets. Benefiting from this, the company has been performing favorably and has delivered an average earnings surprise of 8.01% over the last four quarters.

The fourth quarter is also witnessing the same with the buyout of premium properties – Uptown District, Sandy Springs Plaza and Village Plaza being the noteworthy ones. The inclusion of premium development and redevelopment projects as well as leading national retailers as tenants is also a key earnings driver. We expect this to provide Regency with a considerable up-market potential and prove accretive to the fourth-quarter earnings.

Other Stocks to Consider

Regency is not the only stock performing impressively this earnings season. We also observe that there are other companies, which are likely to beat earnings.

Prologis Inc. ( PLD - Analyst Report ) has Earnings ESP of +7.32% and Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The company is scheduled to report its earnings on Feb 6 before the opening bell.

Ventas Inc. ( VTR - Analyst Report ) has Earnings ESP of +1.03% and Zacks Rank #2. The company is scheduled to report its earnings on Feb 15 before the opening bell.

Equity Residential ( EQR - Analyst Report ) has Earnings ESP of +12.00% and Zacks Rank #3. The company is scheduled to report its earnings on Feb 5 after the closing bell.