A.D. BEARD LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
04016999 · ltd · incorporated 2000-06-19
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 Sept 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 59). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (75/100)

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
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 1 with DOB)
73
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
65 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Sept 2024Sept 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-09-302024-09-30
Average employees1100

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 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-06-26
    📄
    appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP03
  3. 2025-06-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2025-06-25
    ➕
    HOLLIGAN, Jayne Belinda appointed
    secretary
  5. 2024-06-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-06-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-09-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-06-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-06-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-06-03
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  12. 2018-06-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-07-20
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  14. 2017-06-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-07-21
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2016-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2015-07-06
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  18. 2008-04-23
    ➖
    THOMPSON, Ian resigned
    secretary
  19. 2005-08-22
    ➖
    BELFORD, John resigned
    secretary
  20. 2005-08-22
    ➕
    THOMPSON, Ian appointed
    secretary
  21. 2000-06-22
    ➕
    BEARD, Alan Dale appointed
    director
  22. 2000-06-22
    ➕
    BELFORD, John appointed
    secretary
  23. 2000-06-22
    ➖
    HARRISON, Irene Lesley resigned
    nominee-secretary
  24. 2000-06-22
    ➖
    BUSINESS INFORMATION RESEARCH & REPORTING LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  25. 2000-06-19
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A.D. BEARD LIMITED
  26. 2000-06-19
    ➕
    HARRISON, Irene Lesley appointed
    nominee-secretary
  27. 2000-06-19
    ➕
    BUSINESS INFORMATION RESEARCH & REPORTING LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

100/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BEARD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

75/100
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 59. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

clean
No 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%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Alan Dale Beard
Individual · British · DOB 10/1967 · age 59
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control19/06/2017

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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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
Incorporated2000-06-19
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

Unit 7b Lakeland Business Park
Lamplugh Road
Cockermouth
Cumbria
CA13 0QT
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last made up to: 2025-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-03
Last: 2025-06-19

Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)

HOLLIGAN, Jayne Belinda→
secretary · appointed 2025-06-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BEARD, Alan Dale→
director · ~59y · appointed 2000-06-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BELFORD, John→
secretary · appointed 2000-06-22 · resigned 2005-08-22
Resigned
HARRISON, Irene Lesley→
nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-06-19 · resigned 2000-06-22
Resigned
THOMPSON, Ian→
secretary · appointed 2005-08-22 · resigned 2008-04-23
Resigned
BUSINESS INFORMATION RESEARCH & REPORTING LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-06-19 · resigned 2000-06-22
Resigned

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

Recent filings (65 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-26
appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2025-06-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-06-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-06-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-06-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-06-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-18