H&R Block has become the latest US financial institution to be hit by the turmoil in subprime mortgages this quarter, on Thursday saying it had made a loss during what is normally its strongest time of the year.

The company, whose main business is to help customers prepare their taxes, lost $86m, or 26 cents per share, in its fourth quarter. That compares with earnings of $588m, or $1.79 a share, in the same period last year.