ABBEY BACH ENGINEERING SERVICES LTD
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 74). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -35% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. 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.
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredKey financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-07-31 | 2024-07-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £1.6k | £1.9k |
| Current assets | £5.0k | £6.1k |
| Cash | £2.9k | £4.5k |
| Debtors | £637 | £114 |
| Net assets | £-1.0k | £-782 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Corporate timeline (17 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-09📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-11-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-02-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-01-02📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2018-01-01➕MEES, Christine Gloria appointeddirector
- 2017-11-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-11-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-28📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2012-07-25🏢Company incorporatedAs ABBEY BACH ENGINEERING SERVICES LTD
- 2012-07-25➕MEES, David James appointeddirector
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 74 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 14 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 74 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 14 years.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
cleanShareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr David James Mees Individual · British · DOB 09/1952 · age 74 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board controlsig. influence75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence | 25/07/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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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 →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
Registered office
Filing status
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.