Free prep of 1040EZ forms to begin at 3,050 Walmarts

Free preparation of the simple tax forms will be made available at more than 3,000 Walmart Stores nationwide starting Monday.

The nation’s largest retailer has contracted with the top two tax prep companies, H&R Block Inc. and Jackson-Hewitt Tax Service Inc., to set up kiosks inside its stores where customers can have their tax returns completed by trained preparers.

As it is doing in its own retail locations nationwide, H&R Block will offer free preparation of 1040EZ forms at Walmart through Feb. 29. Block will have kiosks in about 250 Walmart stores.

It’s the second year that Block is offering free prep of 1040EZ forms. The company has shifted strategies to retain market share after struggling for several years, and the free preparations are one of its tactics to get people in the door.

Jackson-Hewitt will provide free prep of the simple forms throughout the tax season at about 2,800 Walmart stores. A spokesman said some of its retail outlets may also offer free 1040EZ prep, but doing so is not companywide policy.

Netflix starts video service in United Kingdom, Ireland

Netflix’s Internet video service made its debut in the United Kingdom and Ireland on Monday as part of a previously announced expansion that is expected to saddle the company with its first annual loss in a decade. The subscription service will stream TV shows and movies on devices with high-speed Internet connections.

Netflix Inc. is charging 5.99 pounds per month in the U.K. and 6.99 euros per month in Ireland. That translates into about $9 per month. Netflix charges $8 per month for Internet video in the U.S.

Lovefilm, an Internet video service that already has about 2 million European subscribers, said last month that it will charge 4.99 pounds per month to stream movies and TV episodes. Lovefilm is owned by Amazon.com Inc., which introduced a U.S. video service last year.

Stocks drifting as investors wait for corporate results

Stocks drifted higher Monday in a fourth consecutive listless session. Traders waited for corporate financial results to start rolling in so they could look for clues about the economy.

In the unofficial kickoff to earnings season, Alcoa, considered an economic bellwether because so many companies use its products, said it lost $34 million from October through December because of lower demand for aluminum.

The loss amounted to 3 cents per share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet, a provider of financial data, had expected a loss of 2 cents per share. Alcoa said revenue was $6 billion, compared with an estimate of $5.7 billion.

The Dow closed up 32.77 points, or 0.3 percent, at 12,392.69. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained 2.89 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,280.70. The Nasdaq composite index rose 2.34, or 0.1 percent, to 2,676.56.

Volume was light Monday, as it has been all but one trading day this year, at 3.28 billion shares. Last year, about 4.3 billion shares changed hands on an average day.