A.R. NEWS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
02116225 · ltd · incorporated 1987-03-27
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 Apr 2025
Net worth
£25.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 47620
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 65-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 65). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 2 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 35.0y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 35.0 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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 2 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
91 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 declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £24,958
Cash YoY
+125%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£25k
↑ 125% YoY
Net Worth
£25k
↑ 2.3% YoY
Current Assets
£47k
↑ 11% 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 | £25.3k | £25.7k |
| Current assets | £47.3k | £42.7k |
| Cash | £24.7k | £11.0k |
| Debtors | £21.8k | £27.1k |
| Net assets | £25.0k | £24.4k |
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
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 officers
Last 180 days
3
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 officers
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2026-03-04📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2026-03-01➖RODDA, Cynthia Rose resigneddirector
- 2026-01-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-09-01📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-09-01📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-09-01📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-09-01📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2024-10-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-01-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-09-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-01-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 1999-02-23🔒Charge registered #2Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 1991-05-09🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 1987-03-27🏢Company incorporatedAs A.R. NEWS LIMITED
Owner dependency
90/100
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 age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
75/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 39 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
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 Adrian Richard Rodda Individual · British · DOB 04/1961 · age 65 | — | — | sig. influencesignificant influence · firm interest | 16/02/2017 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 GILDED LTD→ 16285847 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 1957 LIMITED→ 13624690 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| A & B PRIVATE LIMITED→ 13379695 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| A QUARTER OF SWEETS LIMITED→ 15391593 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ACTION PACT LTD→ 11667038 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ALL BRANDS DISTRIBUTION LIMITED→ 11879261 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ANAGEN HAIR LIMITED→ 04841721 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ARTYS PET REMEDIES LTD→ 16589252 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ARVIKA(UK) LTD→ 15379688 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ASCEND INNOVATIONS LTD→ 15410525 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ASM PETROLEUM LIMITED→ 15481696 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ASM UK RETAIL LIMITED→ 16235989 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
8 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
Incorporated1987-03-27
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47620 — SIC 47620
Registered office
6 Garrick Buildings
Oxford Street
Harrogate
HG1 1QE
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-07
Last: 2026-02-21
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | Mortgage debenture | 1 property | 23/02/1999 | — | |
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | Legal mortgage | 1 property | 09/05/1991 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (91 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-05
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-03-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-01-09
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-09-01
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-09-01
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-09-01
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2025-09-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-01-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-02