438 DIGITAL LTD
💤Zombieactive
08918023 · ltd · incorporated 2014-03-03
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 2025
Net worth
£5.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
73/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Advertising agencies
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 73/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -99% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
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 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
42 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
73/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
50
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
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 £5,040
Net assets shrinking
Down £4,149 YoY
Cash draining
Cash down 99% YoY
Cash YoY
-99%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£169
↓ 99% YoY
Net Worth
£5k
↓ 45% YoY
Current Assets
£143k
↑ 38% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-12-31 | 2024-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £9.3k | £21.0k |
| Current assets | £143.2k | £103.9k |
| Cash | £169 | £13.4k |
| Debtors | £143.1k | £90.5k |
| Net assets | £5.0k | £9.2k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2026-07-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-09📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-09-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-28📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-06📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2020-10-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-25📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC02
- 2020-08-26📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2020-06-09📄withdrawal-of-a-person-with-significant-control-statementpersons-with-significant-control · PSC09
- 2020-03-31📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-10-04📄withdrawal-of-a-person-with-significant-control-statementpersons-with-significant-control · PSC09
- 2019-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-27📄withdrawal-of-a-person-with-significant-control-statementpersons-with-significant-control · PSC09
- 2014-03-03🏢Company incorporatedAs 438 DIGITAL LTD
- 2014-03-03➕BRENNAN, Andrew Mark appointeddirector
Owner dependency
80/100
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.
- +No director turnover: Company is 12 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
58/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- 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 Andrew Mark Brennan Individual · British · DOB 06/1975 · age 51 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 26/08/2020 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- 438 Marketing Limitedceased 06/04/2021· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Professional services · IG postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A FAIRER CHANCE C.I.C.→ 07764762 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ADMO LTD→ 07188098 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| ADP ACCOUNTING SERVICES UK LIMITED→ 14151308 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ADURA SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 11391570 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ADVANCE CONSORTIUM UK LTD→ 13479989 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ADVANCED HIRE SERVICES LTD→ 15851847 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ADVANCED MARKETING CONSULTING LIMITED→ 11215054 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ADVANCED SOLUTIONS CONSULTANTS LIMITED→ 05426429 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| ADVOCO LTD→ 06762284 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| AEON NURSING LTD→ 11590407 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| AESTHETIC COMPANY LIMITED→ 03861282 · est 1999 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 26y | — | — |
| AFFAF ACCOUNTANTS LIMITED→ 11167929 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2014-03-03
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC73110 — Advertising agencies
Registered office
214 Grangewood House
43 Oakwood Hill
Loughton, Essex
IG10 3TZ
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-23
Last: 2026-01-09
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
BRENNAN, Andrew Mark→
Activedirector · ~51y · appointed 2014-03-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (42 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-07-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-25
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-01-09
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-09-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-08
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-09-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-04-16
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2021-04-06