ASHER ASSOCIATES LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC189951 · ltd · incorporated 1998-10-02
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 27.2y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Oct 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Other engineering activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 82990Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 59). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 27.2y
85/100
ready
Refinance conversation should be productive — structure clean and timing right.
- · Oldest live charge is 27.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.
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, 2 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, 4 with DOB)
81
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 4 total, 4 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
97 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
83/100Exceptional
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
85
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-10-31 | 2023-10-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 1800 | 1600 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
- 2025-09-23📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-07-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-06-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-05-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-09-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-09-22📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-07-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-18📄statement-of-companys-objectschange-of-constitution · CC04
- 2020-11-17📄capital-variation-of-rights-attached-to-sharescapital · SH10
- 2020-11-16📄capital-name-of-class-of-sharescapital · SH08
- 2020-11-13📄memorandum-articlesincorporation · MA
- 2020-11-13📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2020-10-07📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2020-07-29📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-07-29📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-04-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-30➖BURLEY, Paul Thomas resigneddirector
- 2017-05-09➖ASHER, Kenneth George resignedsecretary
- 2017-05-09➖ASHER, Kenneth George resigneddirector
- 2012-01-07🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2010-04-01➕CARSON, Ryan appointeddirector
- 2000-11-01➕BURLEY, Paul Thomas appointeddirector
- 1999-02-24🔒Charge registered #2Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 1998-10-15➕MILNE, William Andrew appointeddirector
- 1998-10-15➕ASHER, Kenneth George appointedsecretary
- 1998-10-15➖OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1998-10-15➕ASHER, Kenneth George appointeddirector
- 1998-10-15➖JORDANS (SCOTLAND) LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1998-10-02🏢Company incorporatedAs ASHER ASSOCIATES LIMITED
- 1998-10-02➕OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1998-10-02➕JORDANS (SCOTLAND) LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
76/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
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 28 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
76/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 59. Early succession window.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 28 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 28 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
cleanNo 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| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr William Andrew Milne Individual · British · DOB 06/1967 · age 59 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 20/04/2018 |
3 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Mr Paul Thomas Burleyceased 17/09/2020· 25-50% shares
- Mr Paul Thomas Burleyceased 30/04/2018· significant influence
- Mr Kenneth George Asherceased 09/05/2017· significant influence
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DAVIDSON THORBURN CONSULTING LIMITED→ SC334834 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| DEVORGILLA PROJECTS LIMITED→ SC692965 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| EASY READ FOR YOU CIC→ SC764647 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| EXSAR CONSULTING LIMITED→ SC246463 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| FIRTH VETERINARY CENTRE LIMITED→ SC461618 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| G HENDERSON ENGINEERING LTD→ SC849448 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| GALLOWAY VETS LIMITED→ SC537595 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| GAVIN BELL MECHANICAL ENGINEERING LIMITED→ SC606727 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| GEOMACSTRACKS LIMITED→ SC626635 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| GF1 INVESTMENTS (HOLDINGS) LIMITED→ SC595513 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| GF2 INVESTMENTS LIMITED→ SC638842 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| GM MARINE LIMITED→ SC384029 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 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
Incorporated1998-10-02
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC71129 — Other engineering activities
Registered office
32 George Street
Dumfries
DG1 1EH
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-06
Last: 2025-09-22
Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)
CARSON, Ryan→
Activedirector · ~53y · appointed 2010-04-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MILNE, William Andrew→
Activedirector · ~59y · appointed 1998-10-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ASHER, Kenneth George→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1998-10-15 · resigned 2017-05-09
OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1998-10-02 · resigned 1998-10-15
ASHER, Kenneth George→
Resigneddirector · ~66y · appointed 1998-10-15 · resigned 2017-05-09
BURLEY, Paul Thomas→
Resigneddirector · ~71y · appointed 2000-11-01 · resigned 2018-04-30
JORDANS (SCOTLAND) LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 1998-10-02 · resigned 1998-10-15
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Bond & floating charge | 1 property | 24/02/1999 | 07/01/2012 |
Recent filings (97 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-23
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-09-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-06-25
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-10-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-09
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-09
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-28
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-09-22
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-09-22
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-09-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-07-22