Shares in focus: Centrica’s comeback trail

Utility company Centrica has had a rough ride. But with the shares offering a decent dividend yield, should you still buy in? Phil Oakley investigates.

The utility has had a rough ride, but the bad news is in the price, says Phil Oakley.

Utility companies such as Centrica are supposed to be relatively safe investments. We all need to heat and light our homes and that should mean a utility's profits are quite predictable which should in turn lead to chunky dividends that grow in line with inflation.

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Phil spent 13 years as an investment analyst for both stockbroking and fund management companies.

 

After graduating with a MSc in International Banking, Economics & Finance from Liverpool Business School in 1996, Phil went to work for BWD Rensburg, a Liverpool based investment manager. In 2001, he joined ABN AMRO as a transport analyst. After a brief spell as a food retail analyst, he spent five years with ABN's very successful UK Smaller Companies team where he covered engineering, transport and support services stocks.

 

In 2007, Phil joined Halbis Capital Management as a European equities analyst. He began writing for MoneyWeek in 2010.