4 MAINTENANCE ENGINEERING LTD

💤Zombieactive
05076635 · ltd · incorporated 2004-03-17
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
£433.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Manufacture of metal structures and parts of structures
Sector: Manufacturing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 28990SIC 28990
  • 71129Other engineering activities
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 73-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 73). 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 (78/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 3 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
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
3 connected companies via shared directors
54
Filing history
80 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 · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £433,316
Cash YoY
+224%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£84k
↑ 224% YoY
Net Worth
£433k
↑ 23% YoY
Current Assets
£447k
↑ 43% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£89k£179k£268k£358k£447kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£504.6k£461.1k
Current assets£447.4k£312.2k
Cash£84.2k£26.0k
Debtors£292.1k£215.2k
Net assets£433.3k£351.0k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-12-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-05-25
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  7. 2021-05-24
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  8. 2021-05-24
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  9. 2021-03-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-12-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-03-07
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  12. 2019-02-05
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  13. 2019-02-05
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  14. 2018-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-11-20
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  16. 2018-05-14
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  17. 2017-03-01
    ➖
    HICKIE, Stephan David resigned
    secretary
  18. 2014-07-04
    ➕
    HICKIE, Tracey Suzanne appointed
    secretary
  19. 2012-05-11
    ➖
    TURNER, Philip John resigned
    director
  20. 2004-03-17
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As 4 MAINTENANCE ENGINEERING LTD
  21. 2004-03-17
    ➕
    HICKIE, Stephan David, Mr appointed
    director
  22. 2004-03-17
    ➕
    HICKIE, Stephan David appointed
    secretary
  23. 2004-03-17
    ➕
    WAYNE, Harold appointed
    nominee-secretary
  24. 2004-03-17
    ➖
    WAYNE, Harold resigned
    nominee-secretary
  25. 2004-03-17
    ➕
    TURNER, Philip John appointed
    director
  26. 2004-03-17
    ➕
    WAYNE, Yvonne appointed
    nominee-director
  27. 2004-03-17
    ➖
    WAYNE, Yvonne resigned
    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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 73 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

100/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 73 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • 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 Stephan David Hickie
Individual · British · DOB 08/1953 · age 73
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control06/04/2016

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 →

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

8 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
Incorporated2004-03-17
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC25110 — Manufacture of metal structures and parts of structures

Registered office

Unit 3, Stroude Farm
Stroude Road
Virginia Water
Surrey
GU25 4BY
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-01
Last: 2025-07-18

Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)

HICKIE, Tracey Suzanne→
secretary · appointed 2014-07-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HICKIE, Stephan David, Mr →
director · ~73y · appointed 2004-03-17
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HICKIE, Stephan David→
secretary · appointed 2004-03-17 · resigned 2017-03-01
Resigned
WAYNE, Harold→
nominee-secretary · appointed 2004-03-17 · resigned 2004-03-17
Resigned
TURNER, Philip John→
director · ~64y · appointed 2004-03-17 · resigned 2012-05-11
Resigned
WAYNE, Yvonne→
nominee-director · ~46y · appointed 2004-03-17 · resigned 2004-03-17
Resigned

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

Recent filings (80 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-22
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2021-05-25
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-05-24
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-05-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-03-17