4 THOUGHT LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
03019338 · ltd · incorporated 1995-02-08
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 28.9y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£130.2k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other telecommunications activities
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 73-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 73). 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: strategic trade sale (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 28.9y

65/100
clean up first

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 28.9 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
8 officers (3 active, 8 linked, 4 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
90 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 · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £130,229

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£130k
↑ 9.6% YoY
Current Assets
£5k
↑ 39% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£26k£52k£78k£104k£130kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£5.3k£118.8k
Current assets£5.3k£3.9k
Net assets£130.2k£118.8k

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

Recent activity

Last 30 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
2
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (30 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-03-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-04-01
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  5. 2023-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-03-07
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  7. 2022-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-01-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-02-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2017-12-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-12-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  13. 2016-03-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-03-26
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  15. 2016-03-23
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2010-03-31
    ➖
    HALL, Andrew resigned
    director
  17. 2007-05-31
    ➕
    HALL, Andrew appointed
    director
  18. 2003-10-05
    ➖
    PAYNE, Nicholas John resigned
    director
  19. 2001-06-04
    ➕
    PAYNE, Nicholas John appointed
    director
  20. 1997-06-11
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
  21. 1995-02-08
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As 4 THOUGHT LIMITED
  22. 1995-02-08
    ➕
    READ, Susan appointed
    secretary
  23. 1995-02-08
    ➕
    COX, David appointed
    director
  24. 1995-02-08
    ➕
    READ, Susan appointed
    director
  25. 1995-02-08
    ➕
    COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  26. 1995-02-08
    ➖
    COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  27. 1995-02-08
    ➕
    COMBINED NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  28. 1995-02-08
    ➖
    COMBINED NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  29. 1995-02-08
    ➕
    COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  30. 1995-02-08
    ➖
    COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

83/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 31 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 73 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

96/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong 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 31 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 31 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

1 active beneficial owner
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr David Cox
Individual · British · DOB 07/1953 · age 73
——sig. influencesignificant influence06/04/2016

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 →

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

7 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
Incorporated1995-02-08
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC61900 — Other telecommunications activities

Registered office

4 Sherrards Mansions
Welwyn Garden City
Herts
AL8 7AY

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-23
Last: 2025-12-09

Officers (3 active · 5 resigned)

READ, Susan→
secretary · appointed 1995-02-08
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
COX, David→
director · ~73y · appointed 1995-02-08
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
READ, Susan→
director · ~65y · appointed 1995-02-08
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1995-02-08 · resigned 1995-02-08
Resigned
HALL, Andrew→
director · ~60y · appointed 2007-05-31 · resigned 2010-03-31
Resigned
PAYNE, Nicholas John→
director · ~67y · appointed 2001-06-04 · resigned 2003-10-05
Resigned
COMBINED NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 1995-02-08 · resigned 1995-02-08
Resigned
COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 1995-02-08 · resigned 1995-02-08
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
National Westminster Bank
National Westminster Bank PLC
Mortgage debenture1 property11/06/1997—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (90 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-03-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-11
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2023-04-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-03-31
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2023-03-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-01-29