AST EXPRESS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
04314774 · ltd · incorporated 2001-11-01
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 24.6y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Oct 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Freight transport by road
Sector: Transportation & storage
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 69-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 69). 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 (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 24.6y

50/100
clean up first

Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.

  • · Oldest live charge is 24.6 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
  • · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (77/100)

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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
10 officers (4 active, 10 linked, 6 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
77 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
83/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

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

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
85
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
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
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Oct 2024Oct 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-10-312024-10-31

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (35 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-09-30
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  3. 2025-07-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2024-07-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-06-10
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  6. 2024-06-10
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  7. 2024-06-10
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  8. 2024-02-01
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  9. 2024-01-31
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Aldermore Bank PLC
  10. 2023-10-31
    ➕
    RODGERS, Amanda appointed
    director
  11. 2023-10-31
    ➕
    RODGERS, Paul appointed
    director
  12. 2023-07-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2023-06-10
    ➖
    CLARKE, Amanda Jayne resigned
    secretary
  14. 2022-07-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2021-07-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  16. 2020-08-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  17. 2019-07-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  18. 2019-01-03
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  19. 2018-07-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  20. 2017-03-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  21. 2008-01-01
    ➕
    WATSON, Roy appointed
    director
  22. 2005-02-28
    ➖
    ELLIOT, Andrew resigned
    director
  23. 2003-12-10
    ➕
    ELLIOT, Andrew appointed
    director
  24. 2002-08-12
    ➕
    CLARKE, Amanda Jayne appointed
    secretary
  25. 2002-08-12
    ➖
    WATSON, Marianne resigned
    secretary
  26. 2002-08-12
    ➖
    SOWDEN, Drew resigned
    director
  27. 2001-12-03
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Cattles Invoice Finance Limited
  28. 2001-11-01
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As AST EXPRESS LIMITED
  29. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    WATSON, Marianne appointed
    director
  30. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    WATSON, Marianne appointed
    secretary
  31. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    BRITANNIA COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  32. 2001-11-01
    ➖
    BRITANNIA COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  33. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    SOWDEN, Drew appointed
    director
  34. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    DEANSGATE COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  35. 2001-11-01
    ➖
    DEANSGATE COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

73/100
High — earn-out structure required

Material founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.

FACTORS
  • -4 active directors: Broader management team in place — suggests transferable governance.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 25 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 69 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

70/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 69. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 25 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • 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
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mrs Marianne Watson
Individual · British · DOB 09/1959 · age 67
——sig. influencesignificant influence06/04/2016

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

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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
Incorporated2001-11-01
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC49410 — Freight transport by road

Registered office

Unit 2 Platt St
Dukinfield
SK16 4QZ
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-07-31
Last made up to: 2025-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-24
Last: 2025-06-10

Officers (4 active · 6 resigned)

RODGERS, Amanda→
director · ~46y · appointed 2023-10-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
RODGERS, Paul→
director · ~44y · appointed 2023-10-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WATSON, Marianne→
director · ~67y · appointed 2001-11-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WATSON, Roy→
director · ~69y · appointed 2008-01-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CLARKE, Amanda Jayne→
secretary · appointed 2002-08-12 · resigned 2023-06-10
Resigned
WATSON, Marianne→
secretary · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2002-08-12
Resigned
BRITANNIA COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2001-11-01
Resigned
ELLIOT, Andrew→
director · ~63y · appointed 2003-12-10 · resigned 2005-02-28
Resigned
SOWDEN, Drew→
director · ~52y · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2002-08-12
Resigned
DEANSGATE COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2001-11-01
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Aldermore
Aldermore Bank PLC
A registered charge—31/01/2024—
outstanding
Cattles Invoice Finance
Cattles Invoice Finance Limited
All assets debenture1 property03/12/2001—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (77 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-04-30
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-09-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-10
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-10
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-06-10
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-06-10
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-06-10
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2024-02-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-07-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-07-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-08