AC AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
05262236 · ltd · incorporated 2004-10-18
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 21.3y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£288.9k
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 60-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 60). 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 (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 21.3y

65/100
clean up first

Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.

  • · Oldest live charge is 21.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

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
11 officers (3 active, 11 linked, 5 with DOB)
79
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
69 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
83/100Exceptional
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
85
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 · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £288,938
Cash YoY
-12%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£176k
↓ 12% YoY
Net Worth
£289k
↑ 1.2% YoY
Current Assets
£319k
↓ 9.7% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£71k£141k£212k£283k£354kMar 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£289.8k£285.9k
Current assets£319.4k£353.6k
Cash£175.6k£200.2k
Debtors£69.4k—
Net assets£288.9k£285.4k

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 (36 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-09-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-12-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-11-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-08-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2020-11-04
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-07-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2018-07-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2017-07-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2016-10-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-02-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-02-10
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  13. 2015-10-19
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2015-03-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2014-10-21
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2011-02-28
    ➖
    HOWARD, Timothy John resigned
    director
  17. 2008-04-15
    ➖
    MATHER, Guy Lloyd resigned
    director
  18. 2007-05-31
    ➕
    MATHER, Tracy appointed
    secretary
  19. 2007-05-31
    ➖
    HANCOX, Gary resigned
    director
  20. 2007-03-31
    ➖
    HANCOX, Gary resigned
    secretary
  21. 2006-12-22
    ➕
    HANCOX, Gary appointed
    secretary
  22. 2006-12-22
    ➖
    HOWARD, Timothy John resigned
    secretary
  23. 2006-12-22
    ➖
    MATHER, Tracy resigned
    secretary
  24. 2006-02-14
    ➕
    HANCOX, Gary appointed
    director
  25. 2006-02-10
    ➕
    HOWARD, Timothy John appointed
    director
  26. 2005-11-01
    ➕
    HOWARD, Timothy John appointed
    secretary
  27. 2005-03-02
    ➕
    MATHER, Guy Lloyd appointed
    director
  28. 2005-03-01
    ➕
    LUCAROTTI, James appointed
    director
  29. 2005-01-24
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  30. 2004-10-19
    ➕
    MATHER, Dale Patrick appointed
    director
  31. 2004-10-19
    ➕
    MATHER, Tracy appointed
    secretary
  32. 2004-10-19
    ➖
    HCS SECRETARIAL LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  33. 2004-10-19
    ➖
    HANOVER DIRECTORS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  34. 2004-10-18
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As AC AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED
  35. 2004-10-18
    ➕
    HCS SECRETARIAL LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  36. 2004-10-18
    ➕
    HANOVER DIRECTORS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

76/100
High — earn-out structure required

Material founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.

FACTORS
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

76/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • 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

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr James Lucarotti
Individual · British · DOB 06/1974 · age 52
——sig. influencesignificant influence06/04/2016
Mr Dale Patrick Mather
Individual · British · DOB 05/1966 · age 60
——sig. influencesignificant influence06/04/2016

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

6 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
Incorporated2004-10-18
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200

Registered office

Unit 2 Llanthony Business Park
Llanthony Rd
Gloucester
GL2 5QT

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-01
Last: 2025-10-18

Officers (3 active · 8 resigned)

MATHER, Tracy→
secretary · appointed 2007-05-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
LUCAROTTI, James→
director · ~52y · appointed 2005-03-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
MATHER, Dale Patrick→
director · ~60y · appointed 2004-10-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HANCOX, Gary→
secretary · appointed 2006-12-22 · resigned 2007-03-31
Resigned
HOWARD, Timothy John→
secretary · appointed 2005-11-01 · resigned 2006-12-22
Resigned
MATHER, Tracy→
secretary · appointed 2004-10-19 · resigned 2006-12-22
Resigned
HCS SECRETARIAL LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2004-10-18 · resigned 2004-10-19
Resigned
HANCOX, Gary→
director · ~66y · appointed 2006-02-14 · resigned 2007-05-31
Resigned
HOWARD, Timothy John→
director · ~56y · appointed 2006-02-10 · resigned 2011-02-28
Resigned
MATHER, Guy Lloyd→
director · ~56y · appointed 2005-03-02 · resigned 2008-04-15
Resigned
HANOVER DIRECTORS LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2004-10-18 · resigned 2004-10-19
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
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Debenture1 property24/01/2005—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (69 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-11-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-08-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-11-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-10-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-10-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-07-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-10-18