AMBRAY LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
05043121 · ltd · incorporated 2004-02-13
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 Sept 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 46150
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 64-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 64). 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 (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 18.7y

45/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 18.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

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
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
Network not yet resolved
30
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.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Sept 2024Sept 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-09-302024-09-30
Average employees1100

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-02-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-11-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-12-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2020-11-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-12-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2018-11-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2017-11-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2016-11-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-02-15
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  12. 2015-11-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  13. 2015-02-13
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2015-01-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2014-03-04
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2011-06-08
    ➖
    SPARKS, Matthew resigned
    director
  17. 2007-09-13
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  18. 2007-08-15
    ➖
    BRAY, Nicola Denise resigned
    director
  19. 2007-08-15
    ➕
    SPARKS, Matthew appointed
    director
  20. 2004-02-13
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As AMBRAY LIMITED
  21. 2004-02-13
    ➕
    BRAY, Nicola Denise appointed
    secretary
  22. 2004-02-13
    ➕
    BRAY, Andrew Mark appointed
    director
  23. 2004-02-13
    ➕
    SAME-DAY COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2004-02-13
    ➖
    SAME-DAY COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2004-02-13
    ➕
    BRAY, Nicola Denise appointed
    director
  26. 2004-02-13
    ➕
    WILDMAN & BATTELL LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  27. 2004-02-13
    ➖
    WILDMAN & BATTELL LIMITED resigned
    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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BRAY" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +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 · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Andrew Mark Bray
Individual · British · DOB 10/1962 · age 64
75–100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting06/04/2016

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
Incorporated2004-02-13
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC46150 — SIC 46150

Registered office

3 Friends Walk
Staines
Middlesex
TW18 4PG

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last made up to: 2025-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-27
Last: 2026-02-13

Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)

BRAY, Nicola Denise→
secretary · appointed 2004-02-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRAY, Andrew Mark→
director · ~64y · appointed 2004-02-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SAME-DAY COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2004-02-13 · resigned 2004-02-13
Resigned
BRAY, Nicola Denise→
director · ~67y · appointed 2004-02-13 · resigned 2007-08-15
Resigned
SPARKS, Matthew→
director · ~53y · appointed 2007-08-15 · resigned 2011-06-08
Resigned
WILDMAN & BATTELL LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2004-02-13 · resigned 2004-02-13
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Debenture1 property13/09/2007—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (59 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-05-13
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-13
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-11-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-11-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-02-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-12-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-02-13