JOHN ATHERTON AUTOS LTD

🌳Matureactive
04595737 · ltd · incorporated 2002-11-20
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
  • · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£206.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 65-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 65). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

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
11 officers (3 active, 11 linked, 6 with DOB)
81
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
78 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £206,791
Cash YoY
+16%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£189k
↑ 16% YoY
Net Worth
£207k
↑ 29% YoY
Current Assets
£217k
↑ 9.0% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£43k£87k£130k£174k£217kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£236.6k£180.9k
Current assets£217.0k£199.1k
Cash£188.8k£162.9k
Debtors£25.4k£33.4k
Net assets£206.8k£160.4k

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 (35 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-11-13
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  5. 2023-11-13
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  6. 2023-11-13
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  7. 2022-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-12-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-01-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2017-12-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2016-12-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2015-12-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2015-11-23
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2012-03-01
    ➕
    ATHERTON, Lesley appointed
    secretary
  17. 2012-03-01
    ➖
    ATHERTON, Kerry Jane resigned
    secretary
  18. 2012-03-01
    ➖
    ATHERTON, Kerry Jane resigned
    director
  19. 2010-10-31
    ➖
    HOOK, Stephen resigned
    director
  20. 2010-10-31
    ➖
    WOODS, Andrew Christopher resigned
    director
  21. 2010-02-01
    ➕
    ATHERTON, Lesley appointed
    director
  22. 2005-12-31
    ➕
    ATHERTON, Kerry Jane appointed
    secretary
  23. 2005-12-31
    ➖
    CASEY, Margaret resigned
    secretary
  24. 2005-12-01
    ➕
    HOOK, Stephen appointed
    director
  25. 2005-12-01
    ➕
    WOODS, Andrew Christopher appointed
    director
  26. 2004-02-08
    ➕
    ATHERTON, Kerry Jane appointed
    director
  27. 2004-02-08
    ➖
    ATHERTON, William resigned
    director
  28. 2002-12-13
    ➕
    ATHERTON, John Andrew appointed
    director
  29. 2002-12-13
    ➕
    CASEY, Margaret appointed
    secretary
  30. 2002-12-13
    ➕
    ATHERTON, William appointed
    director
  31. 2002-11-29
    ➖
    FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  32. 2002-11-29
    ➖
    FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  33. 2002-11-20
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As JOHN ATHERTON AUTOS LTD
  34. 2002-11-20
    ➕
    FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  35. 2002-11-20
    ➕
    FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD appointed
    corporate-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
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "ATHERTON" — 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.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

86/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • 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

clean
No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Shareholders & ownership

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr John Andrew Atherton
Individual · British · DOB 04/1961 · age 65
50–75%
—50-75% shares06/04/2016
Mrs Lesley Atherton
Individual · British · DOB 03/1967 · age 59
50–75%
—50-75% shares06/04/2016

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
Incorporated2002-11-20
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200

Registered office

2 Wood Street
Wigan
Lancashire
WN3 4HL

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-23
Last: 2025-11-09

Officers (3 active · 8 resigned)

ATHERTON, Lesley→
secretary · appointed 2012-03-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ATHERTON, John Andrew→
director · ~65y · appointed 2002-12-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ATHERTON, Lesley→
director · ~59y · appointed 2010-02-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ATHERTON, Kerry Jane→
secretary · appointed 2005-12-31 · resigned 2012-03-01
Resigned
CASEY, Margaret→
secretary · appointed 2002-12-13 · resigned 2005-12-31
Resigned
FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-11-20 · resigned 2002-11-29
Resigned
ATHERTON, Kerry Jane→
director · ~43y · appointed 2004-02-08 · resigned 2012-03-01
Resigned
ATHERTON, William→
director · ~92y · appointed 2002-12-13 · resigned 2004-02-08
Resigned
HOOK, Stephen→
director · ~65y · appointed 2005-12-01 · resigned 2010-10-31
Resigned
WOODS, Andrew Christopher→
director · ~54y · appointed 2005-12-01 · resigned 2010-10-31
Resigned
FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-11-20 · resigned 2002-11-29
Resigned

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

Recent filings (78 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-16
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-11-13
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-11-13
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2023-11-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-09