AVONSIDE ENGINE COMPANY LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
02561182 · ltd · incorporated 1990-11-22
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 52103
Sector: Transportation & storage
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 72). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
5 officers (1 active, 5 linked, 3 with DOB)
82
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
85 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 1 | 100 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (22 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-30📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2020-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-05📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2016-08-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-07-11📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-09-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-13📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2011-09-22➖RADCLIFFE, Nicholas resignedsecretary
- 2007-10-29➖PAYNE, Edmund John resignedsecretary
- 2007-10-29➕RADCLIFFE, Nicholas appointedsecretary
- 2006-10-29➖BELL, Peter John resigneddirector
- 1993-11-15➖KEMP, Christopher John resigneddirector
- 1990-11-22🏢Company incorporatedAs AVONSIDE ENGINE COMPANY LIMITED
Owner dependency
90/100
Critical — business is the founderThe business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
85/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 72 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 36 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
Red flags
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Edmund John Payne Individual · British · DOB 11/1954 · age 72 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Transport & logistics · BA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A D BARNES AND SON LIMITED→ 12091617 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ABLE CAB LTD→ 15111801 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ADELISA LTD→ 15012103 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ATLAS SOUTH WEST LIMITED→ 09019967 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| AVANTE TRANSPORT LTD→ 15904417 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AVON CRUISING LIMITED→ 05807179 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| B & D HEAL LIMITED→ 05960905 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| BALLOONING ACCESS LTD→ 16064861 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BARRY DALTON INTERNATIONAL LOGISTICS LTD→ 17108819 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BARTER TRANSPORT LTD→ 13076600 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| BATH CARAVAN STORAGE LTD→ 14177010 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| BATH CITY TAXIS LTD→ 16008953 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
8 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →🔒Advanced scoring suite
Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated1990-11-22
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC52103 — SIC 52103
Registered office
15 Beech Grove
Warminster
Wiltshire
BA12 0AB
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-09
Last: 2025-06-25
Officers (1 active · 4 resigned)
Active
PAYNE, Edmund John→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2007-10-29
RADCLIFFE, Nicholas→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2007-10-29 · resigned 2011-09-22
BELL, Peter John→
Resigneddirector · ~81y · resigned 2006-10-29
KEMP, Christopher John→
Resigneddirector · ~61y · resigned 1993-11-15
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (85 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-23
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extended
accounts · AA01
2021-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-09-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-05