MACKENZIE HUGHES LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC202788 · ltd · incorporated 2000-01-05
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
What changed my view
Last 30 days

No material changes in the last 30 days.

Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£260.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: Development of building projects
Sector: Construction
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 77/100 (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: Discharge stale live charges. 3 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

4 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 22.7y

30/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 22.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

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
4 charges (4/4 with lender, 4/4 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (1 active, 6 linked, 2 with DOB)
77
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
84 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £260,536

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£711k
Net Worth
£261k
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£142k£284k£427k£569k£711kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£267.1k—
Cash£711.1k—
Net assets£260.5k—
Average employees—500

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

2 signals 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
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (34 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-01-18
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
  4. 2024-01-18
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  5. 2023-12-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-01-17
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  7. 2023-01-17
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  8. 2023-01-17
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  9. 2022-09-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2022-08-29
    ➖
    STUART, Kate Mary Helen resigned
    secretary
  11. 2022-08-11
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  12. 2021-12-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2021-01-26
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  14. 2020-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2019-09-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2018-08-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2018-01-29
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  18. 2018-01-29
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  19. 2018-01-07
    ➖
    FORTEATH, Lynda resigned
    director
  20. 2016-06-30
    ➕
    FORTEATH, Lynda appointed
    director
  21. 2009-12-11
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  22. 2009-12-03
    🔒
    Charge registered #4
    Lender: Adam & Company PLC
  23. 2009-08-17
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Adam & Company PLC
  24. 2006-03-01
    ➖
    FORTEATH, Elise Helen Mary resigned
    secretary
  25. 2006-03-01
    ➕
    STUART, Kate Mary Helen appointed
    secretary
  26. 2003-10-22
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Aib Group (UK) PLC
  27. 2003-10-16
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Aib Group (UK) PLC
  28. 2000-01-10
    ➖
    ASHCROFT CAMERON SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  29. 2000-01-10
    ➖
    ASHCROFT CAMERON NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  30. 2000-01-05
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As MACKENZIE HUGHES LIMITED
  31. 2000-01-05
    ➕
    FORTEATH, Rory George Mackenzie appointed
    director
  32. 2000-01-05
    ➕
    FORTEATH, Elise Helen Mary appointed
    secretary
  33. 2000-01-05
    ➕
    ASHCROFT CAMERON SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  34. 2000-01-05
    ➕
    ASHCROFT CAMERON NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

85/100
Critical — business is the founder

The 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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.

Succession & seller-readiness

75/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

clean
No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Group structure

Mackenzie Ardloch Ltd is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
Mackenzie Ardloch Ltd
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares
ultimate parent
⬇
MACKENZIE HUGHES LIMITED
This company · SC202788

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%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mackenzie Ardloch Ltd
Corporate entity
75–100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting13/04/2023
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Mrs Lynda Forteathceased 07/01/2018· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
  • Mr Rory George Mackenzie Forteathceased 13/04/2023· 50-75% shares · 50-75% voting

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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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
Incorporated2000-01-05
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC41100 — Development of building projects

Registered office

4 Old Tolbooth Wynd
Calton Road
Edinburgh
EH8 8EQ

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-19
Last: 2026-01-05

Officers (1 active · 5 resigned)

FORTEATH, Rory George Mackenzie→
director · ~53y · appointed 2000-01-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
FORTEATH, Elise Helen Mary→
secretary · appointed 2000-01-05 · resigned 2006-03-01
Resigned
STUART, Kate Mary Helen→
secretary · appointed 2006-03-01 · resigned 2022-08-29
Resigned
ASHCROFT CAMERON SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-01-05 · resigned 2000-01-10
Resigned
FORTEATH, Lynda→
director · ~47y · appointed 2016-06-30 · resigned 2018-01-07
Resigned
ASHCROFT CAMERON NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-01-05 · resigned 2000-01-10
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

4
Total charges
3
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:4 of 4 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Adam & Company
Adam & Company PLC
Standard security1 property03/12/2009—
outstanding
Adam & Company
Adam & Company PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property17/08/2009—
outstanding
Aib Group (UK)
Aib Group (UK) PLC
Standard security1 property22/10/2003—
satisfied
Aib Group (UK)
Aib Group (UK) PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property16/10/200311/12/2009
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (84 total)

confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-24
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-18
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
2024-01-18
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-01-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-17
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-01-17
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-01-17
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2023-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-01
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-08-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-11