ACT! SOFTWARE LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
08397789 · ltd · incorporated 2013-02-11
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other information technology service activities
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 13.0y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 13.0 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (1 active, 6 linked, 6 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
0 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
62 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 0 | 5100 |
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
1
filing
- • 1 persons-with-significant-control
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 persons-with-significant-control
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (32 events)Click to expand
- 2026-03-17📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-09-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2024-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-08📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-03-07📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-12-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-03📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-10-03📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-09-29📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-06-16📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-06-16📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2023-03-09➕READING, Bruce Manuel appointeddirector
- 2023-03-09➖ORIOLA, Steven Joseph resigneddirector
- 2023-03-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2023-02-20📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-09-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-29📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2020-08-14📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2020-02-25📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-12-01➖OECHSLE III, Henry John resigneddirector
- 2019-12-01➕ORIOLA, Steven Joseph appointeddirector
- 2018-08-25🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2018-08-14➖FREEMAN, Roger resigneddirector
- 2018-08-14➖SARWAR, Omair resigneddirector
- 2018-05-18➕FREEMAN, Roger appointeddirector
- 2018-05-18➖OGDON, Robert resigneddirector
- 2018-05-18➕SARWAR, Omair appointeddirector
- 2013-06-17🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 2013-02-11🏢Company incorporatedAs ACT! SOFTWARE LIMITED
- 2013-02-11➕OECHSLE III, Henry John appointeddirector
- 2013-02-11➕OGDON, Robert appointeddirector
Owner dependency
83/100
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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
65/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 64. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
Red flags
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
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| ADEBAYO IMPACT STUDIOS LTD→ 17078920 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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| AEGIS INTELLIGENCE LTD→ 16504851 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AFRICA EATS DIGITAL LTD→ 17065466 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AH IT SERVICES LIMITED→ 10443900 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| AI TECHNOLOGY STUDIOS UK LIMITED→ 16627457 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AI4GOOD LTD→ 16641319 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AIATELLA LTD→ 14241231 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| AIM KHAN CONSULTING LIMITED→ 16355117 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
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 →🔒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
Incorporated2013-02-11
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC62090 — Other information technology service activities
Registered office
Q5 1st Floor Quorum Business Park
Benton Lane
Newcastle Upon Tyne
NE12 8BS
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-25
Last: 2026-02-11
Officers (1 active · 5 resigned)
READING, Bruce Manuel→
Activedirector · ~64y · appointed 2023-03-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FREEMAN, Roger→
Resigneddirector · ~58y · appointed 2018-05-18 · resigned 2018-08-14
OECHSLE III, Henry John→
Resigneddirector · ~64y · appointed 2013-02-11 · resigned 2019-12-01
OGDON, Robert→
Resigneddirector · ~71y · appointed 2013-02-11 · resigned 2018-05-18
ORIOLA, Steven Joseph→
Resigneddirector · ~62y · appointed 2019-12-01 · resigned 2023-03-09
SARWAR, Omair→
Resigneddirector · ~42y · appointed 2018-05-18 · resigned 2018-08-14
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 17/06/2013 | 25/08/2018 |
Recent filings (62 total)
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2026-03-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-small
accounts · AA
2025-09-08
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-small
accounts · AA
2024-09-23
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-03-08
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-03-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-small
accounts · AA
2023-12-29
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-10-03
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-10-03
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-09-29
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-06-16
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2023-06-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-small
accounts · AA
2023-03-09