AUTO SPARKS (STRANRAER) LTD
🌳Matureactive
SC467871 · ltd · incorporated 2014-01-20
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Apr 2025
Net worth
£11.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
74/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 74/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
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
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
27 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
74/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
55
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £11,039
Cash YoY
+16%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£170k
↑ 16% YoY
Net Worth
£11k
↑ 158% YoY
Current Assets
£251k
↑ 20% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-04-30 | 2024-04-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £198.3k | £169.1k |
| Current assets | £250.8k | £209.3k |
| Cash | £169.6k | £146.7k |
| Debtors | £79.2k | £60.7k |
| Net assets | £11.0k | £4.3k |
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 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2017-08-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-02-23📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2016-01-23📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-09-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-01-20📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-09-30📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2014-05-01➕MAGEE, Tracy Lynette appointeddirector
- 2014-01-20🏢Company incorporatedAs AUTO SPARKS (STRANRAER) LTD
- 2014-01-20➕MAGEE, Stephen John appointeddirector
Owner dependency
71/100
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.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 12 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
49/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 12 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 Stephen John Magee Individual · British · DOB 12/1971 · age 55 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Tracy Lynette Magee Individual · British · DOB 06/1973 · age 53 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Automotive · DG postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EUROROUTE LIMITED→ SC110658 · est 1988 | £4.11M £3.29M–£4.93M | £11.78M | — | 6500 | 38y | 83 | 78y |
| ARMSTRONG TRUCKS LIMITED→ SC302512 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | 82 | 70y |
| CAR AND TRUCK SERVICES LIMITED→ SC185954 · est 1998 | — | — | £160.8k | — | 27y | 82 | 77y |
| HUNTINGDON GARAGE LIMITED→ SC279130 · est 2005 | — | — | — | 3 | 21y | 82 | 62y |
| ARDWELL MARINE LIMITED→ SC253417 · est 2003 | — | — | — | — | 22y | 80 | 72y |
| BRIDGE END GARAGE (DUMFRIES) LIMITED→ SC237808 · est 2002 | — | — | £266.2k | — | 23y | 80 | 66y |
| DUMFRIES HYDRAULIC SERVICES LIMITED→ SC351503 · est 2008 | — | — | — | 100 | 17y | 80 | 77y |
| GARAGE 27 LTD→ SC877598 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| M K TRUCK SERVICES LIMITED→ SC847184 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| OTB AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED→ SC669460 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| PSK AUTO REPAIRS LTD→ SC832121 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| RELIABLE AUTOMOTIVE LTD→ 14541236 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2014-01-20
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200
Registered office
Unit 2 Fountain Way
Blackparks Industrial Estate
Stranraer
Wigtownshire
DG9 7UD
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-03
Last: 2026-01-20
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
MAGEE, Stephen John→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 2014-01-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MAGEE, Tracy Lynette→
Activedirector · ~53y · appointed 2014-05-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (27 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2026-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-01-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-11-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-01-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-11-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2019-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-01-21