ABBEY ALES LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
03317496 · ltd · incorporated 1997-02-13
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 Feb 2025
Net worth
£-48.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Manufacture of beer
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 79). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -52% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 28.4y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 28.4 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 (81/100)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
6 officers (4 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
8 connected companies via shared directors
69
Filing history
94 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
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
80
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 · FRS 102Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £48,595
Cash draining
Cash down 52% YoY
Cash YoY
-52%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£9k
↓ 52% YoY
Net Worth
-£49k
↓ 24% YoY
Current Assets
£19k
↓ 29% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-02-28 | 2024-02-29 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-42.2k | £-21.8k |
| Current assets | £19.2k | £27.3k |
| Cash | £8.8k | £18.2k |
| Debtors | £3.4k | £1.6k |
| Net assets | £-48.6k | £-39.2k |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
- 2025-11-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-11-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-23📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-12-15📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-11-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-03-14📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-03-14📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-03-14📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-03-14📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2019-02-07📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2019-02-01➕MORGAN, Simon Lewis appointeddirector
- 2018-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-21📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2006-11-28➕MORGAN, Susan Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2002-09-25🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 1998-01-22🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1997-02-18➕MORGAN, Susan Elizabeth appointedsecretary
- 1997-02-18➕MORGAN, Alan Richard appointeddirector
- 1997-02-18➖BRIGHTON SECRETARY LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1997-02-18➖BRIGHTON DIRECTOR LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1997-02-13🏢Company incorporatedAs ABBEY ALES LIMITED
- 1997-02-13➕BRIGHTON SECRETARY LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1997-02-13➕BRIGHTON DIRECTOR LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
83/100
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
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 29 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 79 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
90/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 79 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 29 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 29 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
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 Alan Richard Morgan Individual · British · DOB 01/1947 · age 79 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 12/02/2017 |
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
Active · Food & drink · BA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARTISAN CAKES OF BRISTOL LTD→ 14629966 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| BATH BOTANICS LIMITED→ 08831776 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| BEECHCROFT HOLDINGS LIMITED→ 15307267 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BLACK VEN DISTILLERY LIMITED→ 11975726 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BLINDMANS BREWERY LIMITED→ 05112543 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| BRICKELLS ICECREAM LIMITED→ 11376970 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BROADIES SUPPLEMENTS LIMITED→ 12146317 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BROCOOK LTD→ 15256210 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BROTHERS DRINKS CO. LIMITED→ 02711055 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 33y | — | — |
| BROWN COW ORGANICS LIMITED→ 05515748 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| BURNS THE BREAD LIMITED→ 07518404 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| C&M MEALS LTD→ 13596377 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1997-02-13
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC11050 — Manufacture of beer
Registered office
Unit D2 Commerce Park
Southgate
Frome
BA11 2RY
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-11-30
Last made up to: 2025-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-15
Last: 2026-02-01
Officers (4 active · 2 resigned)
MORGAN, Susan Elizabeth→
Activesecretary · appointed 1997-02-18
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MORGAN, Alan Richard→
Activedirector · ~79y · appointed 1997-02-18
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MORGAN, Simon Lewis→
Activedirector · ~54y · appointed 2019-02-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MORGAN, Susan Elizabeth→
Activedirector · ~79y · appointed 2006-11-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BRIGHTON SECRETARY LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1997-02-13 · resigned 1997-02-18
BRIGHTON DIRECTOR LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 1997-02-13 · resigned 1997-02-18
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 | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Legal mortgage | 1 property | 25/09/2002 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 22/01/1998 | — |
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
2026-02-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-11-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-11-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-11-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-11-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-10-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-02-19
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2019-12-23
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2019-12-15