ACOUSTEEL LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
03895101 · ltd · incorporated 1999-12-15
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 25990
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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 (58/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 25.4y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 25.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
6 connected companies via shared directors
63
Filing history
73 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
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 | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-08-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-09-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-01-22📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2014-12-23📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-09-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2014-01-09📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2008-01-28➕CUTTS, Ray appointedsecretary
- 2008-01-12➖MARSDEN, Ernest Neville resignedsecretary
- 2002-07-31➖INGRAM, Mark resigneddirector
- 2002-03-27🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2001-01-23🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Singer & Friedlander Factors Limited
- 1999-12-15🏢Company incorporatedAs ACOUSTEEL LIMITED
- 1999-12-15➕MARSDEN, Ian Neville appointeddirector
- 1999-12-15➕CHICK, Lesley Anne appointednominee-secretary
- 1999-12-15➖CHICK, Lesley Anne resignednominee-secretary
- 1999-12-15➕MARSDEN, Ernest Neville appointedsecretary
- 1999-12-15➕INGRAM, Mark appointeddirector
- 1999-12-15➕REDDING, Diana Elizabeth appointednominee-director
- 1999-12-15➖REDDING, Diana Elizabeth resignednominee-director
Owner dependency
85/100
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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
75/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 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
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| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Ian Neville Marsden Individual · British · DOB 12/1971 · age 55 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
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
Active · Manufacturing · NE postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AEI CABLES LIMITED→ 07745837 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| AEROTECH AVIATION SERVICES LTD→ 17017069 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AFTER A LOCK AND SAFE LIMITED→ 03998786 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| AG UK ART LIMITED→ 15221671 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AGA INDUSTRY LTD→ 15054425 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AGMA LIMITED→ 00939450 · est 1968 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 57y | — | — |
| AGRICHEMIX LIMITED→ 16831941 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AGW MECHANICAL SERVICES LIMITED→ 14840876 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AH METAL & WASTE RECYCLING LTD→ 16757577 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AH PANEL SOLUTIONS LTD→ 16286649 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AI HEALTH SOLUTIONS LTD→ 17108392 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AIKO ROOF BARS LIMITED→ 15941973 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1999-12-15
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC25990 — SIC 25990
Registered office
Unit 5 Naylor Court
Blaydon Haugh Ind Estate
Blaydon
Tyne & Wear
NE21 5SD
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-20
Last: 2025-12-06
Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)
Active
MARSDEN, Ian Neville→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 1999-12-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CHICK, Lesley Anne→
Resignednominee-secretary · appointed 1999-12-15 · resigned 1999-12-15
MARSDEN, Ernest Neville→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1999-12-15 · resigned 2008-01-12
INGRAM, Mark→
Resigneddirector · ~59y · appointed 1999-12-15 · resigned 2002-07-31
REDDING, Diana Elizabeth→
Resignednominee-director · ~74y · appointed 1999-12-15 · resigned 1999-12-15
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Singer & Friedlander Factors Singer & Friedlander Factors Limited | Debenture | 1 property | 23/01/2001 | 27/03/2002 |
Recent filings (73 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-08-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-08-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-09-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-08-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-09-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-12-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2020-09-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-12-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2019-09-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-12-19