A businessman who set up a joint venture with Michael Jackson to take ownership of Neverland Ranch has written an an open letter to Santa Barbara residents warning them that mourners are about to converge on their community, according to press reports. Thomas J. Barrack Jr. told residents that they must "prepare to accommodate Michael's family's wishes as they contemplate the location of his final resting place and their own return to the tranquil grounds of the Michael Jackson family compound." A viewing of Jackson's body is set to occur Friday at the 2,500-acre ranch within the Santa Barbara County limits.

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Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. said Thursday that it lost $621 million in the fourth quarter as it wrote down assets and spent heavily on restructuring and severance, but its adjusted profit was better than Wall Street expected.

The seller of drinks such as A&W, Squirt and Hawaiian Punch lost $2.44 per share in the quarter that ended Dec. 31, compared to a profit of $138 million, or 54 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell to $1.38 billion from $1.39 billion.

The Plano, Texas-based company was spun-off from Cadbury Schweppes PLC in May 2008.

Without the one-time costs, the company earned 39 cents per share, beating a consensus profit estimate of 37 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters typically exclude one-time items.

The company said it expects 2009 profit of $1.59 to $1.67 per share, excluding a 12-cent per share gain related to the termination of a contract with Hansen Natural Corp. It expects full-year revenue to decline by 2 percent to 4 percent.

In 2008, Dr Pepper Snapple lost $312 million, or $1.23 per share. That compares to a profit of $497 million, or $1.96 per share, in 2007. Revenue rose slightly to $5.71 billion from $5.7 billion.

Excluding one-time charges, the company earned $1.85 per share in 2008. Analysts had expected $1.82 per share.