The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) reported net income above Wall Street’s expectations for the first quarter. Net income for The Walt Disney Company rose to $1.46 billion (80 cents per share) vs. $1.3 billion (68 cents per share) in the same quarter a year earlier. This marks a rise of 12.4% from the year earlier quarter. Revenue rose 0.6% to $10.78 billion from the year earlier quarter. The Walt Disney Company beat the mean analyst estimate of 71 cents per share. It fell short of the average revenue estimate of $11.2 billion.

“We’re off to a good start in this fiscal year executing on our ongoing strategy, deriving greater value from our brands – Disney, Pixar, Marvel, ESPN and ABC – in the U.S. and around the globe,” said Disney President and CEO Robert A. Iger. “We are confident that our commitment to creating and providing exceptional family entertainment on multiple platforms continues to position us to deliver long-term shareholder value.”

Competitors to Watch: CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS), News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA), Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX), Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA), Journal Communications, Inc. (NYSE:JRN), Cumulus Media Inc. (NASDAQ:CMLS), Scripps Networks Interactive, Inc. (NYSE:SNI), Entravision Communication (NYSE:EVC), and Entercom Communications Corp. (NYSE:ETM).

Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ:BWLD) reported net income above Wall Street’s expectations for the fourth quarter.  Net income for Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. rose to $13.6 million (73 cents per share) vs. $10.2 million (55 cents per share) in the same quarter a year earlier. This marks a rise of 34% from the year earlier quarter. Revenue rose 34.5% to $220.5 million from the year earlier quarter. Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. beat the mean analyst estimate of 67 cents per share. It beat the average revenue estimate of $210.1 million.

Sally Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “Our strong fourth quarter performance capped a tremendous year for Buffalo Wild Wings, which reflects the focused efforts and hard work of our franchisees and Team Members in providing sports fans with an outstanding guest experience. Together, we accomplished category-leading results. Fourth quarter same-store sales grew by 8.9% at company-owned and 5.9% at franchised locations, helping us surpass $2 billion in system-wide sales for 2011. Strong sales at both new and existing restaurants drove fourth quarter earnings per share of $0.73, bringing our annual net earnings growth to over 31%.”

Competitors to Watch: Landry’s Restaurants, Inc (LNY), Ark Restaurants Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKR), Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (NASDAQ:RRGB), Brinker Intl., Inc. (NYSE:EAT), O’Charley’s Inc. (NASDAQ:CHUX), Flanigan’s Enterprises, Inc. (AMEX:BDL), California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPKI), BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI), Benihana Inc. (NASDAQ:BNHNA), and P.F. Chang’s China Bistro (NASDAQ:PFCB).

To contact the reporter on this story: Derek Hoffman at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

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