4TH OPTION LTD
Opportunity 72/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Deleverage or restructure. Leverage at 100% of assets — consider sale of non-core assets or equity injection. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 3.1y
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Charge age ~3.1 years — mid-life; refi window approaching.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: high (81/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredKey financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £291.9k | — |
| Current assets | £290.9k | — |
| Net assets | £18.5k | — |
| Average employees | — | 100 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
Corporate timeline (11 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-05-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-02📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2023-11-02🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2023-07-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-05-11📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2023-05-11🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Wedo Payroll Finance LTD
- 2022-04-13📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-11-03🏢Company incorporatedAs 4TH OPTION LTD
- 2021-11-03➕JOHNSTON, Stuart, Mr. appointeddirector
- 2021-11-03📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
Material founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
Some succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
Red flags
cleanShareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr. Stuart Johnston Individual · British · DOB 04/1970 · age 56 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 03/11/2021 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Trade services · BB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A & G REFRIGERATION LIMITED→ 04565936 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| A FALLON AND SON LTD→ 16207096 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| A HALSTEAD LTD→ 15862721 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ABSOLUTE MARKETING LTD→ 14509228 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ACORN CHIMNEY SWEEPS LTD→ 04707703 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| ACORNS OF LANCASHIRE ACCRINGTON LIMITED→ 16001465 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ACS CORPORATE MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 09235552 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ACTIVE ROSES LTD→ 11835194 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ACUTE CIVIL ENGINEERING LIMITED→ 10464304 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| ADDITIONAL SECURITY LTD→ 13539115 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ADITUM TECHNICA LTD→ 11637738 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ADL HEATING MANAGEMENT LTD→ 13588611 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
9 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 →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
Registered office
Filing status
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Wedo Payroll Finance Wedo Payroll Finance LTD | A registered charge | 1 property | 11/05/2023 | 02/11/2023 |