A J OSTRIDGE (TRANSPORT) LIMITED

💤Zombieactive

03063002 · ltd · incorporated 1995-05-31

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 May 2025

Net worth

—

book net assets

Opportunity

82/100

Exceptional

🔒Generate AI memo →🔒Outreach pack →🔒Corporate story →📑 Reports →Sign in to watch

What this business does

Primary activity: SIC 45200

Sector: Wholesale & retail

ALSO REGISTERED FOR

49410Freight transport by road

Investor take

Pursue

Active trading company with a 60-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 60). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 30.7y

45/100

under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

· Oldest live charge is 30.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
· Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
· Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile

address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date

100

Financials

2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed

Lenders & charges

1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)

Directors & officers

8 officers (2 active, 8 linked, 4 with DOB)

Ownership & PSC

1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared

Director network

4 connected companies via shared directors

Filing history

82 filings on record

Gazette notices

No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)

Opportunity Score

82/100Exceptional

PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality

Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.

Acquirability

Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.

Risk profile

Few red flags.

Signal strength

100

Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts

Cash

—

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	2025-05-31	2024-05-31
Average employees	1600	1900

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

filings

Last 90 days

filing

• 1 officers

Last 180 days

filings

• 1 officers
• 1 accounts

Counts from Companies House filing history.

Corporate timeline (32 events)Click to expand

2026-03-04
📄
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-03-02
➖
OSTRIDGE, Andrew James resigned
director
2025-12-01
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-11-26
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-22
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-18
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-03
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-11-20
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-09-05
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2018-09-24
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2017-11-28
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2016-11-18
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2016-06-17
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2015-11-04
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2015-06-15
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2015-02-16
📍
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2014-09-04
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2011-05-31
➖
OSTRIDGE, Anthony James resigned
director
1997-02-10
➕
OSTRIDGE, Joanne appointed
secretary
1997-02-10
➖
OSTRIDGE, Alan Jeffrey resigned
secretary
1995-09-13
🔒
Charge registered #1
Lender: Midland Bank PLC
1995-08-10
➕
OSTRIDGE, Alan Jeffrey appointed
secretary
1995-08-02
➖
YELDHAM, Grahame Richard resigned
secretary
1995-06-29
➕
OSTRIDGE, Alan Jeffery appointed
director
1995-06-29
➖
THOMAS, Howard resigned
nominee-secretary
1995-06-29
➕
YELDHAM, Grahame Richard appointed
secretary
1995-06-29
➕
OSTRIDGE, Andrew James appointed
director
1995-06-29
➕
OSTRIDGE, Anthony James appointed
director
1995-06-29
➖
TESTER, William Andrew Joseph resigned
nominee-director
1995-05-31
🏢
Company incorporated
As A J OSTRIDGE (TRANSPORT) LIMITED
1995-05-31
➕
THOMAS, Howard appointed
nominee-secretary
1995-05-31
➕
TESTER, William Andrew Joseph appointed
nominee-director

Owner dependency

100/100

Critical — business is the founder

The 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 name in company name: Company name contains director surname "OSTRIDGE" — strong identity link between founder and business.
+Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 31 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
+Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100

Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS

secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 31 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 31 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

clean

No 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 Alan Jeffery Ostridge Individual · British · DOB 12/1966 · age 60	75–100%	—	75-100% shares	01/10/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

🔒Co-director network graph

Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Similar companies

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1ST CALL WINDSCREENS LTD→ 03942185 · est 2000 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	26y	—	—
247 MOBILE TYRES ESSEX LIMITED→ 15083884 · est 2023 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	2y	—	—
3E VALETING CENTRE LIMITED→ 13916411 · est 2022 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	4y	—	—
4WHEELS CAR PARTS LTD→ 15681510 · est 2024 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	1y	—	—
4X4 REBUILDING LTD→ 11814077 · est 2019 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	7y	—	—
720 PERFORMANCE LIMITED→ 13427347 · est 2021 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	4y	—	—
A E SMITH BODYCRAFT LIMITED→ 06584117 · est 2008 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	17y	—	—
A J DEDMAN GARAGE SERVICE LIMITED→ 04819065 · est 2003 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	22y	—	—
A J SERVICING LIMITED→ 11009802 · est 2017 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	8y	—	—
A.D DISTRIBUTIONS LIMITED→ 16819562 · est 2025 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
A.G.W. TRADING LIMITED→ 11315778 · est 2018 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	7y	—	—
A1 DYNASTY LTD→ 10789711 · est 2017 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	8y	—	—

Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →

🔒Tailored diligence questions

7 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

Incorporated1995-05-31

Jurisdictionengland-wales

Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200

Registered office

23 Aubrey Close

Chelmsford

CM1 4EJ

Filing status

Accounts

Next due: 2027-02-28

Last made up to: 2025-05-31

Confirmation statement

Next due: 2026-06-14

Last: 2025-05-31

Officers (2 active · 6 resigned)

OSTRIDGE, Joanne→

secretary · appointed 1997-02-10

View their other companies + combined net worth →

Active

OSTRIDGE, Alan Jeffery→

director · ~60y · appointed 1995-06-29

View their other companies + combined net worth →

Active

OSTRIDGE, Alan Jeffrey→

secretary · appointed 1995-08-10 · resigned 1997-02-10

Resigned

THOMAS, Howard→

nominee-secretary · appointed 1995-05-31 · resigned 1995-06-29

Resigned

YELDHAM, Grahame Richard→

secretary · appointed 1995-06-29 · resigned 1995-08-02

Resigned

OSTRIDGE, Andrew James→

director · ~65y · appointed 1995-06-29 · resigned 2026-03-02

Resigned

OSTRIDGE, Anthony James→

director · ~85y · appointed 1995-06-29 · resigned 2011-05-31

Resigned

TESTER, William Andrew Joseph→

nominee-director · ~64y · appointed 1995-05-31 · resigned 1995-06-29

Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

Total charges

Outstanding

Active lenders

Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown

			Type	Properties
	outstanding	Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC	Fixed and floating charge	1 property	13/09/1995	—

Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (82 total)

termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date

officers · TM01

2026-03-04

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full

accounts · AA

2025-12-01