COMMSTAR LTD
💤Zombieactive
06009465 · ltd · incorporated 2006-11-24
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Management consultancy activities other than financial management
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 78-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 78). 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 18.3y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 18.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (57/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (1 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
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
52 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.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-09📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2020-08-26➖FOWLER, Giles David resigneddirector
- 2019-09-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-04-25📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-04-04➖HAYNES, Kevin Clifford resigneddirector
- 2018-09-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-12📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2017-04-03📄capital-return-purchase-own-sharescapital · SH03
- 2017-01-01➕FOWLER, Giles David appointeddirector
- 2016-09-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2010-03-26➖WORCESTER, Michael Gray resignedsecretary
- 2008-12-23➖GALVIN-WRIGHT, Jonathon William resignedsecretary
- 2008-12-23➕WORCESTER, Michael Gray appointedsecretary
- 2008-12-23➖GALVIN-WRIGHT, Jonathon William resigneddirector
- 2008-02-27🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2006-11-24🏢Company incorporatedAs COMMSTAR LTD
- 2006-11-24➕FRY, Dennis Arthur appointeddirector
- 2006-11-24➕GALVIN-WRIGHT, Jonathon William appointedsecretary
- 2006-11-24➕GALVIN-WRIGHT, Jonathon William appointeddirector
- 2006-11-24➕HAYNES, Kevin Clifford appointeddirector
Owner dependency
100/100
Critical — business is the founderThe 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 20 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 78 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
98/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 78 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 20 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 20 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
cleanNo 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| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Dennis Arthur Fry Individual · British · DOB 03/1948 · age 78 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 24/11/2016 |
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 →Similar companies
Active · Professional services · BS postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A F ACCOUNTING LIMITED→ 10560971 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| ADMIN SERVICES AVON LIMITED→ 02934518 · est 1994 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 31y | — | — |
| ADP FINANCE AND ADVISORY SERVICES LIMITED→ 13005277 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ADPEARL ENTERPRISES LTD→ 16111296 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ADRIAN BROOKS LIMITED→ 06888036 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| ADRIAN WHEALE CONSULTANCY LTD→ 13811778 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ADT ACCOUNTANTS AND TAXATION ADVISORS LTD→ 08429498 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| ADTOPS SOLUTION LTD→ 14395814 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ADVANCE BIDCO LIMITED→ 09555514 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ADVANCE TOPCO LIMITED→ 09555348 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ADVANCED MECHANICAL SYSTEMS LTD→ 09208710 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ADVENTURE AWAITS YOU (BRISTOL) LTD→ 13545376 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2006-11-24
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC70229 — Management consultancy activities other than financial management
Registered office
The Cider Barn, Yew Tree Farm Nupdown Lane
Oldbury-On-Severn
Bristol
BS35 1RS
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-10
Last: 2026-04-26
Officers (1 active · 5 resigned)
FRY, Dennis Arthur→
Activedirector · ~78y · appointed 2006-11-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
GALVIN-WRIGHT, Jonathon William→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2006-11-24 · resigned 2008-12-23
WORCESTER, Michael Gray→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2008-12-23 · resigned 2010-03-26
FOWLER, Giles David→
Resigneddirector · ~59y · appointed 2017-01-01 · resigned 2020-08-26
GALVIN-WRIGHT, Jonathon William→
Resigneddirector · ~58y · appointed 2006-11-24 · resigned 2008-12-23
HAYNES, Kevin Clifford→
Resigneddirector · ~62y · appointed 2006-11-24 · resigned 2019-04-04
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
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 27/02/2008 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (52 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-05-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-10-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-08-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-09-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-12-09
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2020-09-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-05-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-09-24