ABS CARGO SERVICES LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
08596383 · ltd · incorporated 2013-07-04
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
£65.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 52242
Sector: Transportation & storage
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 80-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 80). 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).
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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
43 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
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
82
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £65,250
Cash YoY
+16%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£181k
↑ 16% YoY
Net Worth
£65k
↑ 202% YoY
Current Assets
£197k
↓ 47% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £65.3k | £21.6k |
| Current assets | £197.0k | £374.1k |
| Cash | £181.2k | £156.4k |
| Debtors | £15.7k | £217.7k |
| Net assets | £65.3k | £21.6k |
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 (21 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-03-24📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-10-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-07-31📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2024-07-30📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2024-07-26📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-03-25📍default-companies-house-service-address-applied-pscaddress · RP10
- 2023-12-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-03📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2023-06-20📍default-companies-house-registered-office-address-appliedaddress · RP05
- 2023-06-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-04-26📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2022-09-30📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-03-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-01📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2021-06-20📄accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AAMD
- 2021-04-13📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2021-04-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-06📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2013-07-04🏢Company incorporatedAs ABS CARGO SERVICES LIMITED
- 2013-07-04➕COOPER, Alfred appointeddirector
Owner dependency
95/100
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.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 80 — succession pressure is live.
- +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
88/100
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 80 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 13 years.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
1 lowMultiple registered office changes
lowMultiple address changes in a short period can indicate operational instability or admin disorder.
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Alfred Cooper Individual · British · DOB 12/1946 · age 80 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Transport & logistics · HA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24/7 STORAGE CONTAINERS LTD→ 16924848 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2RIDE LTD→ 16292379 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 2YOU LTD→ 12698962 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 7 HILL DELIVERY SERVICES LIMITED→ 11198820 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| 7EVEN ENTERTAINMENT LTD→ 12041283 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| 96 MILLION LIMITED→ 15182077 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| A.DOT.JS LTD→ 15783959 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AAR DE CATERING AND EVENT MANAGEMENT LTD→ 13933710 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ABBOTT T & C LIMITED→ 13118376 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ABIZ CASH & CARRY LIMITED→ 07277573 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| ABY LOGISTICS LIMITED→ 16238989 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AC COURIERS AND FREIGHT SERVICES LIMITED→ 07483879 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-07-04
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC52242 — SIC 52242
Registered office
C/O Parker Cavendish, Suite 301, Stanmore Business And Innovation Centre
Howard Road
Stanmore
Middlesex
HA7 1FW
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-18
Last: 2025-07-04
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
COOPER, Alfred→
Activedirector · ~80y · appointed 2013-07-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (43 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-08
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-03-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-16
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2024-07-31
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2024-07-30
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-07-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-09
default-companies-house-service-address-applied-psc
address · RP10
2024-03-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-20
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2023-08-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-04
default-companies-house-registered-office-address-applied
address · RP05
2023-06-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-07
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2023-04-26