ANDREW BLACK LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
SC224735 · ltd · incorporated 2001-10-30
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 24.2y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£3.88M
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Freight transport by road
Sector: Transportation & storage
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 64-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 64). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 24.2y

65/100
clean up first

Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.

  • · Oldest live charge is 24.2 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 (77/100)

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
8 officers (2 active, 8 linked, 4 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 5 total, 5 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
83 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
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 £3,876,234
Cash YoY
+74%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£1.2m
↑ 74% YoY
Net Worth
£3.9m
↑ 2.1% YoY
Current Assets
£2.9m
↑ 3.7% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£775k£1.6m£2.3m£3.1m£3.9mMar 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£4.34M£4.18M
Current assets£2.91M£2.81M
Cash£1.23M£704.4k
Debtors£1.68M£2.10M
Net assets£3.88M£3.80M

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 (34 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-06-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-05-14
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  3. 2025-02-10
    📄
    capital-variation-of-rights-attached-to-shares
    capital · SH10
  4. 2025-02-10
    📄
    capital-name-of-class-of-shares
    capital · SH08
  5. 2025-02-06
    ➖
    BLACK, Andrew resigned
    director
  6. 2025-02-06
    📄
    memorandum-articles
    incorporation · MA
  7. 2025-02-06
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  8. 2024-11-26
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  9. 2024-11-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2024-11-25
    ➖
    BLACK, Andrew resigned
    secretary
  11. 2024-11-06
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  12. 2024-11-05
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  13. 2024-11-05
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  14. 2023-12-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2023-01-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2021-11-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2021-11-10
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  18. 2021-11-09
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  19. 2021-10-12
    ➖
    BLACK, Janet Murray resigned
    director
  20. 2020-10-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  21. 2019-10-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  22. 2002-03-14
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  23. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    BLACK, Andrew Michael Brownie appointed
    director
  24. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    BLACK, John David Armstrong appointed
    director
  25. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    BLACK, Andrew appointed
    secretary
  26. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    BLACK, Andrew appointed
    director
  27. 2001-11-01
    ➕
    BLACK, Janet Murray appointed
    director
  28. 2001-10-30
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ANDREW BLACK LIMITED
  29. 2001-10-30
    ➕
    PETER TRAINER COMPANY SECRETARIES LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  30. 2001-10-30
    ➖
    PETER TRAINER COMPANY SECRETARIES LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  31. 2001-10-30
    ➕
    PETER TRAINER COMPANY SECRETARIES LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  32. 2001-10-30
    ➖
    PETER TRAINER COMPANY SECRETARIES LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  33. 2001-10-30
    ➕
    PETER TRAINER COMPANY SERVICES LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  34. 2001-10-30
    ➖
    PETER TRAINER COMPANY SERVICES LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

99/100
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
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BLACK" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 25 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

86/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 64. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 25 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 25 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.)

Shareholders & ownership

3 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Andrew Black
Individual · British · DOB 06/1929 · age 97
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting15/11/2022
Mr John David Armstrong Black
Individual · British · DOB 01/1962 · age 64
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
Mr Andrew Michael Brownie Black
Individual · British · DOB 01/1962 · age 64
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Mr Andrew Blackceased 14/11/2022· significant influence
  • The Estate Of The Late Mrs Janet Murray Blackceased 12/10/2021· significant influence

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

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——5041y8761y
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————15y——
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
Incorporated2001-10-30
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC49410 — Freight transport by road

Registered office

No.3 Hangar, Drem Airfield
Drem
East Lothian
EH39 5AW

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-13
Last: 2025-10-30

Officers (2 active · 6 resigned)

BLACK, Andrew Michael Brownie→
director · ~64y · appointed 2001-11-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BLACK, John David Armstrong→
director · ~64y · appointed 2001-11-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BLACK, Andrew→
secretary · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2024-11-25
Resigned
PETER TRAINER COMPANY SECRETARIES LTD.→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2001-10-30 · resigned 2001-10-30
Resigned
BLACK, Andrew→
director · ~97y · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2025-02-06
Resigned
BLACK, Janet Murray→
director · ~94y · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2021-10-12
Resigned
PETER TRAINER COMPANY SECRETARIES LTD.→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2001-10-30 · resigned 2001-10-30
Resigned
PETER TRAINER COMPANY SERVICES LTD.→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2001-10-30 · resigned 2001-10-30
Resigned

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
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property14/03/2002—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (83 total)

confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-06-03
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-05-14
capital-variation-of-rights-attached-to-shares
capital · SH10
2025-02-10
capital-name-of-class-of-shares
capital · SH08
2025-02-10
memorandum-articles
incorporation · MA
2025-02-06
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2025-02-06
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-11-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-11-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-06
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2024-11-06
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-11-05
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-11-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-06