Earnings on Tap: P&G, PepsiCo, ExxonMobil

Consumer giant Procter & Gamble (PG) reports quarterly earnings before the bell Thursday, with Wall Street analysts forecasting earnings-per-share of $0.97, compared with $0.83 in the year-ago quarter, thanks to a slow turnaround in consumer sentiment. However, rising input costs could weigh on margins, while the recent weakness in the U.S. dollar could further pressure profits.

During the earnings call, management may outline growth strategies going forward--recent efforts to sell noncore business lines and a joint venture with Teva (TEVA) being cases in point.

Morningstar analyst Lauren Desanto thinks P&G shares are undervalued at their current market price, compared with her fair value estimate of $77 per share.

Beverage major PepsiCo (PEP) also reports results Thursday. Wall Street analysts on average project the company to post EPS of $0.73, compared with $0.89 in the prior-year quarter.

Shares in the company are up about 6% in the past one month, but the 12-month movement is slightly under 5%, underperforming the broad indexes.

Investors will key in on how the company has balanced rising input costs with price decisions in light of the slow recovery, and whether growth internationally is able to offset potential pressures in domestic sales.

Morningstar analyst Philip Gorham feels PepsiCo may post a slightly stronger 2011 EPS as the global economy picks up, and that the firm's shares are currently undervalued compared with his fair value estimate of $76 per share.

Also reporting numbers is oil giant ExxonMobil (XOM), which is expected to post earnings of $2.05 a share, as opposed to $1.33 in the same quarter last year.

Surging oil prices as well as robust refining margins are expected to provide a boost to profits, but investors will also eye how much came from XTO Energy, the natural-gas giant ExxonMobil acquired in late 2009.