CAITHNESS CHEMICALS (WICK) LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC437650 · ltd · incorporated 2012-11-26
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.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jan 2025
Net worth
£78.2k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 20412
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 66). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 4 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 13.2y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 13.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Cashflow trend is negative — lender view likely cautious.
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
29 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
75
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 declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £78,229
Very low cash
Cash position: £13
Net assets shrinking
Down £5,575 YoY
Cash draining
Cash down 99% YoY
Cash YoY
-99%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£13
↓ 99% YoY
Net Worth
£78k
↓ 6.7% YoY
Current Assets
£96k
↓ 18% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-01-31 | 2024-01-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £206.0k | £223.6k |
| Current assets | £95.5k | £115.9k |
| Cash | £13 | £1.8k |
| Debtors | £77.8k | £92.6k |
| Net assets | £78.2k | £83.8k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-01-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-10-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-17📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2016-12-08🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Dorothy Macdonald
- 2016-10-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-01-04📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-12-18📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-08-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2013-02-11🔒Charge registered #1Lender: James Macdonald & Others
- 2012-11-26🏢Company incorporatedAs CAITHNESS CHEMICALS (WICK) LIMITED
- 2012-11-26➕GRAHAM, Gavin appointeddirector
- 2012-11-26➕MACKAY, James William appointeddirector
Owner dependency
78/100
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.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 66 — succession pressure is live.
- +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
69/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 66. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 13 years.
- 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr James William Mackay Individual · British · DOB 10/1960 · age 66 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Gavin Graham Individual · British · DOB 05/1972 · age 54 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 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
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GAIRSTY QUARRY LTD→ SC378633 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| GRID SURVEYS EUROPE LTD→ SC547599 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| HEAT ORKNEY LIMITED→ SC378770 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| HEBRIDEAN NEW METALS LIMITED→ SC737798 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| HNM INVERCAULD LIMITED→ SC856653 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| J BRECK ENGINEERING LTD→ SC818728 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| JOHN HOOD & SON(SCULPTORS)LIMITED→ SC059449 · est 1976 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 50y | — | — |
| KERR CARPENTRY LIMITED→ SC579905 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| LSW SERVICES LTD→ SC686893 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| MANN ELECTRICAL LTD→ SC733444 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| MOONSHINE CANDLE CO. LTD→ SC851548 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| MORTECH ENGINEERING SERVICES LTD→ SC655537 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2012-11-26
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC20412 — SIC 20412
Registered office
Unit 43a Airport Industrial Estate
Wick Airport
Wick
KW1 4QS
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-10
Last: 2025-11-26
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
GRAHAM, Gavin→
Activedirector · ~54y · appointed 2012-11-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MACKAY, James William→
Activedirector · ~66y · appointed 2012-11-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Dorothy Macdonald / James Macdonald / Caithness Chemicals Dorothy Macdonald / James Macdonald / Caithness Chemicals Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 08/12/2016 | — | |
| outstanding | James Macdonald & Others | Floating charge | 1 property | 11/02/2013 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (29 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-01-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-01-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-12-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-10-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-12-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-10-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-11-29