ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
06403914 · private-limited-guarant-nsc · incorporated 2007-10-19
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other publishing activities
Sector: Information & communication
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 74909Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 63-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 63). 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: low (54/100)

Sparse data coverage. Treat AI-generated outputs as preliminary. Manual diligence essential.

Company profile
address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
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
47 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.

Recent activity

Last 30 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-06-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-07-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-05-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-05-04
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-06-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2021-03-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2019-05-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2018-10-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2017-12-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-06-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2015-11-01
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-no-member-list
    annual-return · AR01
  13. 2015-06-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2014-10-20
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-no-member-list
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2014-06-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2012-10-01
    ➖
    BESCOBY, David John resigned
    director
  17. 2007-10-19
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH LIMITED
  18. 2007-10-19
    ➕
    DAVIES, Stephen William Dafydd appointed
    secretary
  19. 2007-10-19
    ➕
    DAVIES, Stephen William Dafydd appointed
    director
  20. 2007-10-19
    ➕
    BESCOBY, David John appointed
    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 63 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

88/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • 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
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Stephen William Dafydd Davies
Individual · British · DOB 05/1963 · age 63
——sig. influencesignificant influence01/10/2016

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 →
🔒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.

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Company details

Statusactive
Typeprivate-limited-guarant-nsc
Incorporated2007-10-19
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC58190 — Other publishing activities

Registered office

3 Lon Coed Parc
Cockett
Swansea
Glamorgan
SA2 0TT

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-12-31
Last made up to: 2026-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-02
Last: 2025-10-19

Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)

DAVIES, Stephen William Dafydd→
secretary · appointed 2007-10-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DAVIES, Stephen William Dafydd→
director · ~63y · appointed 2007-10-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BESCOBY, David John→
director · ~56y · appointed 2007-10-19 · resigned 2012-10-01
Resigned

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

Recent filings (47 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-06-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-04-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-06-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-10-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-05-13