APPLEDOWNTON LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
08844354 · ltd · incorporated 2014-01-14
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Activities of open-ended investment companies
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 69-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 69). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
3 officers (3 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
29 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
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
90
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 | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 200 | 200 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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 (18 events)Click to expand
- 2025-11-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-01-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-01-21📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-10-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-01-27📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-01-27📄change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2014-01-14🏢Company incorporatedAs APPLEDOWNTON LIMITED
- 2014-01-14➕ADAMS, Kay Louise appointedsecretary
- 2014-01-14➕ADAMS, Kay Louise appointeddirector
- 2014-01-14➕ADAMS, Mark Clinton appointeddirector
Owner dependency
81/100
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
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 69 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
69/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 69. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 12 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
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Mark Clinton Adams Individual · British · DOB 08/1961 · age 65 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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| ARISTO (CATERING) LIMITED→ 00349233 · est 1939 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 87y | — | — |
| AZUREBLU LIMITED→ 10913190 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| B.A.G SERVICES (CHESHUNT) LIMITED→ 08406279 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| BILLDERPAY TRUSTEE LTD→ 16926779 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BLACK LAB NORTON LTD→ 08603957 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| BLUEFRIARS TRAINING AND CONSULTANCY LIMITED→ 10062793 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| BRIEREV HOLDINGS→ 10159239 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| BROMHAM MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 11577930 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BROWNLOW WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD→ 01311922 · est 1977 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 48y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2014-01-14
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC64304 — Activities of open-ended investment companies
Registered office
48 South Road
Baldock
Hertfordshire
SG7 6BZ
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-03
Last: 2026-01-20
Officers (3 active · 0 resigned)
Active
ADAMS, Kay Louise→
Activedirector · ~69y · appointed 2014-01-14
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ADAMS, Mark Clinton→
Activedirector · ~65y · appointed 2014-01-14
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (29 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-12-13