A.E. HUDDLESTON LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
04996569 · ltd · incorporated 2003-12-16
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
£24.1k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 01629
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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 (58/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 1 with DOB)
77
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
50 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £24,057
Net assets shrinking
Down £2,695 YoY
Cash YoY
+87%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£15k
↑ 87% YoY
Net Worth
£24k
↓ 10% YoY
Current Assets
£41k
↑ 29% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £107.9k | £116.2k |
| Current assets | £41.4k | £32.1k |
| Cash | £14.8k | £7.9k |
| Debtors | £18.9k | £13.2k |
| Net assets | £24.1k | £26.8k |
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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-09-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-01-04📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-09-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-01-06📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-09-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-01-06📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2007-03-01➕HUDDLESTON, Sarah Jane appointedsecretary
- 2007-03-01➖BOLTON, Michael resignedsecretary
- 2003-12-16🏢Company incorporatedAs A.E. HUDDLESTON LIMITED
- 2003-12-16➕HUDDLESTON, John Edward, Mr. appointeddirector
- 2003-12-16➕BOLTON, Michael appointedsecretary
Owner dependency
100/100
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 "HUDDLESTON" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
75/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 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 · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr. John Edward Huddleston Individual · British · DOB 07/1973 · age 53 | 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.
Similar companies
Active · Agriculture · LA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A & E CLARKSON LIMITED→ 04075339 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| A & J FRESH FISH LTD→ 13780858 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| A & R CRAYSTON LTD→ 13152367 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| A D CHIPMUNKS LIMITED→ 04963706 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| A J BOLSOVER & SON LTD→ 11462251 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| A J WILSON FARMING LTD→ 13562628 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| A R DICKSON COUNTRYSIDE SERVICES LIMITED→ 11258305 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| A.T. LIVESTOCK LTD→ 15660405 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ADEFBTOS LOGISTICS LTD→ 13346707 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| AG KIRKLAND DEVELOPMENTS LTD→ 12037305 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| AJR NORTHWEST LIMITED→ 06322517 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| ALS EQUINE LTD→ 17069141 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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
Incorporated2003-12-16
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01629 — SIC 01629
Registered office
95 King Street
Lancaster
Lancashire
LA1 1RH
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-29
Last: 2025-12-15
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
HUDDLESTON, Sarah Jane→
Activesecretary · appointed 2007-03-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HUDDLESTON, John Edward, Mr.→
Activedirector · ~53y · appointed 2003-12-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BOLTON, Michael→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2003-12-16 · resigned 2007-03-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (50 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-09-13
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-12-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-11-24
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-12-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-09-25
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-12-18