AUTO TOW LTD
🌳Matureactive
08381645 · ltd · incorporated 2013-01-30
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 6.4y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jan 2025
Net worth
£102.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45400
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 6.4y
85/100
ready
Refinance conversation should be productive — structure clean and timing right.
- · Oldest live charge is 6.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.
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, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
41 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
75
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 105 (micro)Positive net assets
Net assets £102,816
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£103k
↑ 5.6% YoY
Current Assets
£105k
↓ 9.0% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2025-01-31 | 2024-01-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £234.6k | £257.6k |
| Current assets | £105.3k | £115.8k |
| Net assets | £102.8k | £97.4k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-28📄accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AAMD
- 2024-10-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-01-13📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2024-01-11📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2024-01-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-01-02📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2022-11-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-10-12📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-07-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-06-09📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-06-09📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-06-09📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2020-06-09📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2020-03-16📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2020-03-04🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
- 2020-02-17📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2020-02-17🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
- 2019-06-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2013-01-30🏢Company incorporatedAs AUTO TOW LTD
- 2013-01-30➕HUGHES, William Michael appointeddirector
- 2013-01-30➕MILLSON, Steven William appointeddirector
Owner dependency
71/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial 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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
59/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
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.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 13 years.
- 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Steven William Millson Individual · British · DOB 10/1966 · age 60 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr William Michael Hughes Individual · British · DOB 12/1989 · age 37 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Automotive · LL postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A & K AUTOS NORTH WALES LTD→ 09821720 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| A&J DUNCALF INVESTMENTS LTD→ 12280721 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ABSOLUTE PRECISION AUTO DETAILING LTD→ 12442636 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ALPINE CARS LIMITED→ 06496024 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| ANGLESEY AUTO LOCKSMITH LTD→ 13753587 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ANGLESEY SALES LIMITED→ 00968717 · est 1969 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 56y | — | — |
| ASH MOTORS (NW) LIMITED→ 08484978 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| AUTO MECHANIC GARAGE LTD→ 17124920 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AUTO SERVICES (NORTH WALES) LIMITED→ 05918009 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| AUTOBARN-CARSALES LTD→ 13860553 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| AUTOCOLOURS (NW) LIMITED→ 07777314 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| AUTOMOTIVE MAINTENANCE SOLUTIONS LTD→ 14775849 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-01-30
Jurisdictionwales
Primary SIC45400 — SIC 45400
Registered office
Commodore House
51 Conway Road
Colwyn Bay
Conwy
LL29 7AW
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-13
Last: 2026-01-30
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
HUGHES, William Michael→
Activedirector · ~37y · appointed 2013-01-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MILLSON, Steven William→
Activedirector · ~60y · appointed 2013-01-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 04/03/2020 | — | |
| outstanding | Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Bank PLC | A registered charge | — | 17/02/2020 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (41 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-10-31
accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AAMD
2025-04-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-10-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-01
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2024-01-13
dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspended
dissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
2024-01-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-01-10
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2024-01-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-11-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-31
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-10-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-07-14