A. MORRIS & SONS (DUNSFORD) LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
01566347 · ltd · incorporated 1981-06-04
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jul 2024
Net worth
£-31.4k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 25730
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -97% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 44.7y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 44.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
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, 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
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
94 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
70
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 declaredNegative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £31,364
Very low cash
Cash position: £81
Cash draining
Cash down 97% YoY
Cash YoY
-97%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£81
↓ 97% YoY
Net Worth
-£31k
↓ 15% YoY
Current Assets
£81
↓ 98% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-07-31 | 2023-07-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-31.4k | £-27.3k |
| Current assets | £81 | £5.4k |
| Cash | £81 | £2.7k |
| Net assets | £-31.4k | £-27.3k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals 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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2025-07-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-16📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2025-04-15📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2025-02-10📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-01-10📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-07-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-02-21📄appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP03
- 2024-02-20📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2024-02-20📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2023-08-12➕MORRIS, Andrew Stephen John appointedsecretary
- 2023-08-11➖MORRIS, Richard James resignedsecretary
- 2023-08-11➖MORRIS, Richard James resigneddirector
- 2023-04-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-04-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-04-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-03📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2014-05-28➕MORRIS, Andrew Stephen John appointeddirector
- 2014-05-28➖MORRIS, Alec John resigneddirector
- 2000-07-08➖MORRIS, Alec resigneddirector
- 1981-08-20🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank LTD
- 1981-06-04🏢Company incorporatedAs A. MORRIS & SONS (DUNSFORD) LIMITED
Owner dependency
98/100
Critical — business is the founderThe business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "MORRIS" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
70/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- 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 · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Richard James Morris Individual · British · DOB 08/1945 · age 81 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 N SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 16347011 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 1ST CALL VISTA LIMITED→ 04482422 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| 3D AVIATION SYSTEMS LIMITED→ 14111157 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 3D SIGNS & PRINTING LTD→ 17046139 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8088 AUTOMOTIVE LTD→ 15390718 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| 888DESIGNS LTD→ 14339133 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| A.P. DIVING LIMITED→ 02221109 · est 1988 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 38y | — | — |
| A&H WELDING SERVICES LIMITED→ 07050243 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| A2 RIGGING LIMITED→ 03199224 · est 1996 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 29y | — | — |
| A30 DESIGNS LTD→ 12571591 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ABSTONEWORKS LIMITED→ 13683727 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| AC MAINTENANCE (COVENTRY) LIMITED→ 11880662 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1981-06-04
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC25730 — SIC 25730
Registered office
Hazelheath
Longdowns
Nr Penryn
Cornwall
TR10 9DR
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-06
Last: 2026-01-23
Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)
MORRIS, Andrew Stephen John→
Activesecretary · appointed 2023-08-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MORRIS, Andrew Stephen John→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2014-05-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MORRIS, Richard James→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2023-08-11
MORRIS, Alec→
Resigneddirector · ~112y · resigned 2000-07-08
MORRIS, Alec John→
Resigneddirector · ~84y · resigned 2014-05-28
MORRIS, Richard James→
Resigneddirector · ~81y · resigned 2023-08-11
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
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank LTD | Legal mortgage | 1 property | 20/08/1981 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (94 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-09
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2025-04-16
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2025-04-15
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-02-10
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-01-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-05
appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2024-02-21
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-02-20
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-02-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-04-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-04-19