A. L. SAYERS (HOLBETON) LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
00656560 · ltd · incorporated 1960-04-14
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
£5.13M
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 01410
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 61-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 5 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

6 live charges · 5 lenders · oldest 64.4y

15/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 64.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 5 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · 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
6 charges (6/6 with lender, 6/6 with type)
90
Directors & officers
9 officers (3 active, 9 linked, 7 with DOB)
86
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
128 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
77
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 £5,126,948
Net assets shrinking
Down £99,723 YoY
Cash draining
Cash down 88% YoY
Cash YoY
-88%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£131k
↓ 88% YoY
Net Worth
£5.1m
↓ 1.9% YoY
Current Assets
£2.4m
↓ 33% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£1.0m£2.1m£3.1m£4.2m£5.2mMar 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£7.24M£8.17M
Current assets£2.42M£3.59M
Cash£131.5k£1.09M
Debtors£710.8k£874.6k
Net assets£5.13M£5.23M

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
2
filings
  • • 1 resolution
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (36 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-21
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  2. 2025-11-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2024-05-07
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  5. 2024-05-07
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  6. 2024-05-07
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  7. 2024-05-07
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  8. 2024-05-07
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  9. 2024-01-26
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  10. 2023-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2022-12-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2022-03-03
    📍
    move-registers-to-sail-company-with-new-address
    address · AD03
  13. 2022-03-03
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  14. 2021-12-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2021-01-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2020-12-22
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  17. 2020-12-11
    🔒
    Charge registered #6
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  18. 2019-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  19. 2013-12-17
    🔒
    Charge registered #5
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  20. 2013-11-08
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #3
  21. 2013-03-22
    🔒
    Charge registered #4
    Lender: Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC
  22. 2013-01-25
    ➕
    SAYERS, Zoe Clare appointed
    director
  23. 2013-01-25
    ➖
    SAYERS, Sylvia Penelope resigned
    director
  24. 2009-01-02
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
  25. 2008-10-02
    ➕
    SAYERS, Zoe Clare appointed
    secretary
  26. 2008-10-02
    ➖
    SAYERS, Sylvia Penelope resigned
    secretary
  27. 2004-08-12
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  28. 2004-08-12
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  29. 2002-04-01
    ➕
    SAYERS, Geoffrey Spencer appointed
    director
  30. 2002-04-01
    ➖
    CARRICK, Angela Charlotte resigned
    director
  31. 2002-04-01
    ➖
    PERRY, Priscilla Compton resigned
    director
  32. 2002-04-01
    ➖
    SAYERS, Arnold Lewis resigned
    director
  33. 1993-11-22
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Agricultural Mortgage Corporation PLC
  34. 1993-11-07
    ➖
    SAYERS, Geoffery Spencer resigned
    director
  35. 1962-02-14
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Westminster Bank LTD
  36. 1960-04-14
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A. L. SAYERS (HOLBETON) LIMITED

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 "SAYERS" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

76/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. Early succession window.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 24 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 66 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

1 med ·
Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
medium

Multiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Geoffrey Spencer Sayers
Individual · British · DOB 02/1965 · age 61
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control06/04/2016

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
Incorporated1960-04-14
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01410 — SIC 01410

Registered office

Carswell
Holbeton
Plymouth
Devon
PL8 1HH

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-20
Last: 2026-03-06

Officers (3 active · 6 resigned)

SAYERS, Zoe Clare→
secretary · appointed 2008-10-02
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SAYERS, Geoffrey Spencer→
director · ~61y · appointed 2002-04-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SAYERS, Zoe Clare→
director · ~58y · appointed 2013-01-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SAYERS, Sylvia Penelope→
secretary · resigned 2008-10-02
Resigned
CARRICK, Angela Charlotte→
director · ~70y · resigned 2002-04-01
Resigned
PERRY, Priscilla Compton→
director · ~68y · resigned 2002-04-01
Resigned
SAYERS, Arnold Lewis→
director · ~103y · resigned 2002-04-01
Resigned
SAYERS, Geoffery Spencer→
director · ~61y · resigned 1993-11-07
Resigned
SAYERS, Sylvia Penelope→
director · ~99y · resigned 2013-01-25
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

6
Total charges
3
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:6 of 6 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
A registered charge1 property11/12/2020—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
A registered charge1 property17/12/2013—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC
Debenture1 property22/03/2013—
satisfied
HSBC
Hsbc Bank PLC
Debenture1 property02/01/200908/11/2013
satisfied
Agricultural Mortgage Corporation
Agricultural Mortgage Corporation PLC
Collateral charge1 property22/11/199312/08/2004
satisfied
Westminster Bank
Westminster Bank LTD
Mortgage1 property14/02/196212/08/2004
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (128 total)

resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2026-03-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-10
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-19
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-05-07
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2024-05-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-07
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-05-07
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-05-07
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-05-07
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2024-01-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-20