HDB SCIENCE LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
06175525 · ltd · incorporated 2007-03-21
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 Mar 2026
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other research and experimental development on natural sciences and engineering
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 60-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 60). 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 (68/100)

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
1 year of iXBRL accounts extracted (no YoY comparison) + narrative notes parsed
50
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
5 officers (1 active, 5 linked, 1 with DOB)
74
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
55 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

1 year extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2026-03-31
Average employees100

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
2
filings
  • • 1 gazette
  • • 1 dissolution
Last 180 days
5
filings
  • • 2 accounts
  • • 1 gazette
  • • 1 dissolution
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (25 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-06-02
    📄
    gazette-notice-voluntary
    gazette · GAZ1(A)
  2. 2026-05-21
    📄
    dissolution-application-strike-off-company
    dissolution · DS01
  3. 2026-04-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2026-04-23
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  5. 2025-10-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2024-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2024-05-19
    ➖
    CAMBRIDGE NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  8. 2024-05-19
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  9. 2023-10-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2022-10-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2021-10-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2020-10-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2020-09-15
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  14. 2019-10-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-11-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2017-12-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2009-03-11
    ➕
    CAMBRIDGE NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary
  18. 2009-03-11
    ➖
    NICHOLAS CLIFFE & CO LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  19. 2007-03-22
    ➖
    FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  20. 2007-03-22
    ➖
    FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  21. 2007-03-21
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As HDB SCIENCE LIMITED
  22. 2007-03-21
    ➕
    FITZGERALD, John Barry, Dr appointed
    director
  23. 2007-03-21
    ➕
    FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2007-03-21
    ➕
    NICHOLAS CLIFFE & CO LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary
  25. 2007-03-21
    ➕
    FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD appointed
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

93/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

78/100
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 60. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 19 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

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
Dr John Barry Fitzgerald
Individual · British · DOB 05/1966 · age 60
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control06/04/2016

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 →
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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.

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Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2007-03-21
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC72190 — Other research and experimental development on natural sciences and engineering

Registered office

Whitwell
George Street
Cambridge
CB4 1AL
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-12-31
Last made up to: 2026-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-04-04
Last: 2026-03-21

Officers (1 active · 4 resigned)

FITZGERALD, John Barry, Dr→
director · ~60y · appointed 2007-03-21
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CAMBRIDGE NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2009-03-11 · resigned 2024-05-19
Resigned
FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2007-03-21 · resigned 2007-03-22
Resigned
NICHOLAS CLIFFE & CO LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2007-03-21 · resigned 2009-03-11
Resigned
FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2007-03-21 · resigned 2007-03-22
Resigned

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

Recent filings (55 total)

gazette-notice-voluntary
gazette · GAZ1(A)
2026-06-02
dissolution-application-strike-off-company
dissolution · DS01
2026-05-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-04-23
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2026-04-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-09-30
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-05-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-10-05