BALLMA LTD
💤Zombieactive
04393636 · ltd · incorporated 2002-03-13
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
£141.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with exceptional profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 59). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -50% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 19.3y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 19.3 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, 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
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 1 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
59 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
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
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £141,800
Net assets shrinking
Down £17,419 YoY
Cash draining
Cash down 50% YoY
Cash YoY
-50%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£16k
↓ 50% YoY
Net Worth
£142k
↓ 11% YoY
Current Assets
£46k
↓ 26% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £224.6k | £258.4k |
| Current assets | £46.0k | £62.4k |
| Cash | £15.8k | £31.5k |
| Debtors | £30.2k | £31.0k |
| Net assets | £141.8k | £159.2k |
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 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-01-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-03-21📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2019-03-21🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2018-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-04-22📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-03-26📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2007-02-14🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC
- 2002-03-13🏢Company incorporatedAs BALLMA LTD
- 2002-03-13➕HODGSON, Nyree appointedsecretary
- 2002-03-13➕BALL, Mark Anthony appointeddirector
Owner dependency
100/100
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 name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BALL" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 24 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
85/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 59. 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 24 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 24 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 · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Mark Anthony Ball Individual · British · DOB 11/1967 · age 59 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 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
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A & M WEALTH MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 05024320 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ACO DEVELOPMENTS LTD→ 14770069 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ALDERSGATE FUNDING LIMITED→ 12215736 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| APPOINT FINANCIAL CARE LTD→ 15410944 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ASSETLION LIMITED→ 16995056 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ASYMMETRIX PARTNERS LIMITED→ 16118836 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ATHENS VALUE CREATION CONSULTANCY LIMITED→ 16326990 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AUTOFINITY ASSIST LIMITED→ 07728517 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| BAJA INVESTMENTS LTD→ 11581948 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BARIATRIC SURGERY LIMITED→ 08447427 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| BARON KELSO CORPORATE TRUSTEE LTD→ 14041265 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| BARRINGTONCOOPER LTD→ 06934577 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2002-03-13
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC64999 — Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified
Registered office
117 Pewterspear Green Road
Appleton
Warrington
Cheshire
WA4 5FR
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-27
Last: 2026-03-13
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
Active
BALL, Mark Anthony→
Activedirector · ~59y · appointed 2002-03-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
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 | Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC | Deposit agreement to secure own liabilities | 1 property | 14/02/2007 | 21/03/2019 |
Recent filings (59 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-04-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-01-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-03-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-03-25