APB DISPLAYS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC164671 · ltd · incorporated 1996-04-03
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 28.0y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£106.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
73/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Specialised design activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Special-situation opportunityDistressed professional-services with salvageable qualities — special-situations priority.
Opportunity 73/100 (strong), bankability 70/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 73). Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Confirmation statement overdue. Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 28.0y
65/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 28.0 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (79/100)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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 3 with DOB)
79
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
4 connected companies via shared directors
57
Filing history
78 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
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £106,473
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£33k
Net Worth
£106k
↑ 34% YoY
Current Assets
£152k
↑ 11% YoY
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £135.9k | £132.8k |
| Current assets | £152.4k | £137.4k |
| Cash | £32.8k | — |
| Debtors | £116.5k | — |
| Net assets | £106.5k | £79.3k |
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 (30 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-17📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2025-04-17📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2025-04-17📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-11-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-06-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-08-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2017-09-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2017-05-12📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2017-04-01➕BYE, David appointeddirector
- 2017-01-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-05-10📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-10-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2008-10-02➖YOUNG, Georgina resignedsecretary
- 2005-12-05➕YOUNG, Georgina appointedsecretary
- 2005-12-02➖BRASH, Robert resignedsecretary
- 1998-05-14🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
- 1998-04-01➕BRASH, Robert appointedsecretary
- 1997-08-29➖MCGUCKIN, Sara Jane Dyke resignedsecretary
- 1996-04-03🏢Company incorporatedAs APB DISPLAYS LIMITED
- 1996-04-03➕BYE, Alan Peter appointeddirector
- 1996-04-03➕MCGUCKIN, Sara Jane Dyke appointedsecretary
- 1996-04-03➕REID, Brian appointednominee-secretary
- 1996-04-03➖REID, Brian resignednominee-secretary
- 1996-04-03➕MABBOTT, Stephen appointednominee-director
- 1996-04-03➖MABBOTT, Stephen resignednominee-director
Owner dependency
83/100
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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 30 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 73 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
91/100
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 73 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 30 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 30 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
Red flags
1 high ·Confirmation statement overdue
highAnnual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal.
Evidence: Next due: 2026-04-17
Shareholders & ownership
3 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr David Bye Individual · British · DOB 03/1980 · age 46 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 31/03/2022 |
Mrs Mariam Bye Individual · British · DOB 12/1966 · age 60 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 31/03/2022 |
Mr Alan Peter Bye Individual · British · DOB 06/1953 · age 73 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 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.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Professional services · EH postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G J ARCHITECTS LIMITED→ SC311521 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| G L (EDINBURGH) LIMITED→ SC200070 · est 1999 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 26y | — | — |
| GENERAL PARTNER NO.2 LIMITED→ SC251899 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| GENKI TECH LTD→ SC741745 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| GEO ALP LIMITED→ SC565125 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| GERYON LTD→ SC833030 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| GET EVENTS LTD→ SC400254 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| GF ACCOUNTANCY SERVICES LTD→ SC217241 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| GG R&D TAX ADVISORY LIMITED→ SC881790 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| GIFFORDGATE LIMITED→ SC610910 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| GILCHRIST RECRUITMENT PARTNERSHIP LTD→ SC400077 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| GILSON GRAY FINANCIAL LIMITED→ SC717112 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1996-04-03
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC74100 — Specialised design activities
Registered office
20 Douglas Crescent
Edinburgh
EH12 5BA
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-03
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-04-17OVERDUE
Last: 2025-04-03
Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)
BYE, Alan Peter→
Activedirector · ~73y · appointed 1996-04-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRASH, Robert→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1998-04-01 · resigned 2005-12-02
MCGUCKIN, Sara Jane Dyke→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1996-04-03 · resigned 1997-08-29
REID, Brian→
Resignednominee-secretary · appointed 1996-04-03 · resigned 1996-04-03
YOUNG, Georgina→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2005-12-05 · resigned 2008-10-02
MABBOTT, Stephen→
Resignednominee-director · ~76y · appointed 1996-04-03 · resigned 1996-04-03
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company | Floating charge | 1 property | 14/05/1998 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (78 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-06
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-17
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-04-17
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-04-17
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-04-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-11-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-10-10
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-07-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-08-15
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-04-06