Centrica share price suffered a big reversal on Thursday and was the top laggard in the FTSE 100 Index. It slumped by over 9%, reaching a low of 177p, its lowest level since January 15, and is 11.5% from the year-to-date high.
Centrica share price dives as profits dive
Centrica is a top energy company that owns brands like British Gas, Bord Gáis, Centrica Business Solutions, Centrica Energy, and Spirit Energy. It supplies energy to millions of homes in the UK and is also one of the top energy traders in Europe.
Centrica share price slipped after the company published weak financial results as natural gas prices tumbled. Its full-year profit plunged by 40% to £1.42 billion, with the management also citing the volatile market environment that made the market hard to navigate.
The adjusted operating profit dropped from £1.6 billion in 2024 to £0.8 billion last year, while the adjusted earnings per share moved from 19p to 11.2p.
In a statement, the management estimated that its retail EBITDA will see a modest growth of between £500 million and £800 million, with its Optimisation and infrastructure expected to make an EBITDA of £250 million and £650 million, respectively.
Most notably, the management continued to simplify its business. The new structure will have three key segments. Retail will include its residential and business energy delivery solutions, while the Optimization will include Centrica Energy. The Infrastructure will has businesses in the power, gas, and customer assets.
A major challenge the company faces is that natural gas prices have tumbled in the past few months, moving from a high of $5.375 in December last year to the current $2.9. It is hovering near its lowest level in 2025, a move that will continue to affect its margins.
The management is also working to save operational costs in its operations. For example, it recently sold its remaining stake in Cygnus Field to Serica. It also added traders in New York in a bid to boost market share in the United States.
Centrica has continued returning funds to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. It returned £1.1 billion last year by increasing its dividend by 22% to 5.5p. It completed a £2.2 billion share buyback program.
Centrica share price technical analysis
The weekly timeframe chart shows that the Centrica stock price has been in a strong uptrend in the past few years. It moved from a low of 26.27p in 2020 to a record high of 198p.
The stock has recently formed an ascending channel from August 2024. It retreated on Thursday and moved to the lower side of the channel.
It remains above the 50-week and 100-week Exponential Moving Averages (EMA), a sign that bulls are in control. The Percentage Price Oscillator (PPO) has remained above the zero line.
Therefore, the most likely scenario is where the stock drops to the key support level at 164p, its highest level in September 2023. Such a move would be a break-and-retest pattern, a common continuation sign in technical analysis.
If this happens, it may eventually rebound and move above the key resistance level at 200p. On the other hand, a move below the support level at 164.45p will invalidate the bullish outlook.
https://invezz.com/news/2026/02/19/heres-why-the-centrica-share-price-is-crashing-today/
