Does this news mean a new beginning for the price of centric shares?

British gas owner Central (LSE: CNA) saw the price of their shares increase 10% when the markets opened on Thursday (February 20), after the company announced a solid set of results.

Centrica has been delayed Ftse 100 During the last year, after a strong recovery from 2021 to 2023. But today's numbers suggest that the business is still on its way to making sustainable progress. I think this could open the door to higher shares pricing earnings.

Benefits, dividends!

Centrica's operational gain fell 43% to £ 1,552 million in 2024. Despite this, the company presented an increase in dividends of 10%, raising the payment to 4.5p per share. That is a yield of approximately 3.1%, at the time of writing. Shareholders must also benefit from a repurchase of additional shares of £ 500 million. My sums suggest that this should provide a good value for the current levels.

Normally I would not praise a company for increasing their payments when the profits have fallen abruptly. But this is an unusual situation. Centrica's profits are returning to normal after unexpected profits in 2023, when the company's position as a large gas producer meant that it benefited from the highest prices of energy.

The Energy Group accounts show a clear support for dividend and repurchase. This business generated almost 1 billion surplus cash in 2024 and ended the year with net cash of £ 2.8 billion.

Invest for long -term growth

I think the CEO of Centrica, Chris O'Shea, knows he has been lucky. Not long ago, this group was struggling to mark the profits and a heavy debt load.

O'SHEA has planned an investment program of £ 4 billion that is intended to support long -term profits, improve customer satisfaction and position the company for a gradual change towards Net Zero. For example, the company installed almost half a million smart meters last year.

Centrica also agreed to build two 100MW “Flexible hydrogen ready” Gaspoder plants in Ireland and extended the lives of their four nuclear plants in the United Kingdom.

Do actions remain cheap?

There are still some risks here. For me, the biggest concern is that Centrica generated almost half of its underlying profits last year from gas production and energy trade in international markets. These companies can be much more profitable than being a regulated utility of the United Kingdom. But profits can also be much more volatile, depending on basic products market conditions.

In general, I think this is a risk that is worth running. In my opinion, these companies can contribute significantly more attractive yields for shareholders than British gas could do alone.

Centrica's huge cash battery also means that you can invest in long -term opportunities from a strength position. If it is handled well, I think this should be a great opportunity.

Even after this morning's profits, the shares are only quoted in the prognosis profits of 10 times 2025. Shareholders must also be able to wait for a 3.5% dividend yield for the year.

This seems not very demanding. My valuation estimates suggest that central actions could be worth more, even if the profits are level. I think it is worth considering this unconditional energy.