APPLEWORLD LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
05001832 · ltd · incorporated 2003-12-22
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 2025
Net worth
£4.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other information technology service activities
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 64-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 64). 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 (73/100).

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
2 officers (1 active, 2 linked, 1 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
48 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 £4,479
Net assets shrinking
Down £371 YoY

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£4k
↓ 7.6% YoY
Current Assets
£4k
↑ 1.1% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£970£2k£3k£4k£5kDec 2024Dec 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-12-312024-12-31
Total assets£4.5k£4.8k
Current assets£4.1k£4.0k
Net assets£4.5k£4.8k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-10-28
    ➖
    SMITH, Theresa Sheryl resigned
    secretary
  3. 2025-10-28
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  4. 2025-08-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-09-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-09-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-09-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-09-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2017-09-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2016-09-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-01-06
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2015-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2015-01-22
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  17. 2003-12-22
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As APPLEWORLD LIMITED
  18. 2003-12-22
    ➕
    SMITH, Michael Andrew appointed
    director
  19. 2003-12-22
    ➕
    SMITH, Theresa Sheryl appointed
    secretary

Owner dependency

93/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

95/100
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 64. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 22 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 22 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
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Michael Andrew Smith
Individual · British · DOB 03/1962 · age 64
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 →
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Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2003-12-22
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC62090 — Other information technology service activities

Registered office

1a Marlborough Avenue
Hornsea
East Yorkshire
HU18 1UA

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-16
Last: 2025-12-02

Officers (1 active · 1 resigned)

SMITH, Michael Andrew→
director · ~64y · appointed 2003-12-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SMITH, Theresa Sheryl→
secretary · appointed 2003-12-22 · resigned 2025-10-28
Resigned

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

Recent filings (48 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-03-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-02
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2025-10-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-08-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-09-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-09-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-12-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-09-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-02