VARIABLE MESSAGE SIGNS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
09103302 · ltd · incorporated 2014-06-26
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
73/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 27400
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 73/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (63/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (60/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
10 officers (3 active, 10 linked, 7 with DOB)
84
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
18 connected companies via shared directors
90
Filing history
52 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.
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 (36 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2025-08-22📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2025-08-21➕ATTERBURY, Karen Lorraine appointeddirector
- 2025-04-28📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2025-04-14➖NICHOLS, Hannah Kate resigneddirector
- 2024-10-07📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2024-10-07📄appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP03
- 2024-09-30➕ATTERBURY, Karen Lorraine appointedsecretary
- 2024-09-30➖HENDERSON, Charles Alex resignedsecretary
- 2024-07-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-07📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC05
- 2023-08-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-07-18➖SIMMONS, Paul resigneddirector
- 2022-07-18📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-17📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2020-11-16📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2020-11-12➖MUIR, Derek William resigneddirector
- 2020-11-12➕SIMMONS, Paul appointeddirector
- 2020-10-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-06-08📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2020-04-09➖HAMILTON, William Bell resigneddirector
- 2020-02-12📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2020-01-01➕NICHOLS, Hannah Kate appointeddirector
- 2019-09-11📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-08-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2015-01-01➕HENDERSON, Charles Alex appointedsecretary
- 2015-01-01➖HUMPHREYS, John Christopher resignedsecretary
- 2014-07-11➕WHITEHOUSE, Joel Paul appointeddirector
- 2014-07-11➕HUMPHREYS, John Christopher appointedsecretary
- 2014-07-11➖HOOD, John Philip resigneddirector
- 2014-07-11➕MUIR, Derek William appointeddirector
- 2014-07-08➕HOOD, John Philip appointeddirector
- 2014-06-26🏢Company incorporatedAs VARIABLE MESSAGE SIGNS LIMITED
- 2014-06-26➕HAMILTON, William Bell appointeddirector
Owner dependency
58/100
Moderate — manageable with handoverSome founder dependency, but not acute. A structured handover period should cover most risk.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
Succession & seller-readiness
41/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- 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.)
Group structure
Hill & Smith Infrastructure Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
🏛️ultimate parent
Hill & Smith Infrastructure Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control
⬇
VARIABLE MESSAGE SIGNS LIMITED
This company · 09103302
Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Hill & Smith Infrastructure Limited Corporate entity | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02675250 LIMITED→ 02675250 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 34y | — | — |
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| 4D FULL ARCH LIMITED→ 16503205 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4TRESS4GATES LTD→ 05938901 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| A.B.R. (SPECIALIST WELDING) LIMITED→ 01795984 · est 1984 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 42y | — | — |
| AANGEL LTD→ 10982392 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| AAS VEHICLE SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 09354188 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| AB TAILORING LTD→ 15277921 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABBEYDALE MACHINE & TOOL COMPANY LTD.→ 06966037 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| ABC LEISURE GROUP LIMITED→ 02860394 · est 1993 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 32y | — | — |
| ABDALI STARS LIMITED→ 16741502 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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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
Incorporated2014-06-26
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC27400 — SIC 27400
Registered office
Westhaven House Arleston Way
Shirley
Solihull
West Midlands
B90 4LH
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-06
Last: 2025-07-23
Officers (3 active · 7 resigned)
ATTERBURY, Karen Lorraine→
Activesecretary · appointed 2024-09-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ATTERBURY, Karen Lorraine→
Activedirector · ~50y · appointed 2025-08-21
View their other companies + combined net worth →
WHITEHOUSE, Joel Paul→
Activedirector · ~52y · appointed 2014-07-11
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HENDERSON, Charles Alex→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2015-01-01 · resigned 2024-09-30
HUMPHREYS, John Christopher→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2014-07-11 · resigned 2015-01-01
HAMILTON, William Bell→
Resigneddirector · ~60y · appointed 2014-06-26 · resigned 2020-04-09
HOOD, John Philip→
Resigneddirector · ~67y · appointed 2014-07-08 · resigned 2014-07-11
MUIR, Derek William→
Resigneddirector · ~66y · appointed 2014-07-11 · resigned 2020-11-12
NICHOLS, Hannah Kate→
Resigneddirector · ~51y · appointed 2020-01-01 · resigned 2025-04-14
SIMMONS, Paul→
Resigneddirector · ~59y · appointed 2020-11-12 · resigned 2022-07-18
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (52 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-09-10
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-08-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-06
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-04-28
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-10-07
appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2024-10-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-07-04
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-07
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
2023-08-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-08-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-09-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-08
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2022-07-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-09-30