Walt Disney Co. , Burbank, Calif., plans to contribute $148 million in...

Walt Disney Co., Burbank, Calif., plans to contribute $148 million in cash to its pension plans in fiscal 2005, down from $155 million in fiscal 2004, according to an SEC filing. The company's pension plans, with a combined $3.1 billion in assets, were underfunded by $630 million as of June 30. The plans were underfunded by $1.1 billion a year earlier, according to the annual report. Company officials attributed the underfunding to lower-than-expected returns on plan assets in fiscal 2002 and 2003 and an increase in the discount rate over the last two years, to 6.3% for 2004 from 5.85% in 2003. The company's long-term expected rate of return on plan assets was 7.5% for both 2004 and 2003, the filing said.