ADRIAN SMITH RATING LIMITED
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 69). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -94% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredKey financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-10-31 | 2023-10-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-1.3k | £-9.1k |
| Current assets | £3.2k | £5.2k |
| Cash | £40 | £727 |
| Debtors | £3.2k | £4.4k |
| Net assets | £-1.3k | £-9.1k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
- 2025-07-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-07-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-04-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-07-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-28📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-02-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-07-30📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-02-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-06-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-06-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-13📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2017-07-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-04-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-02-29📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2016-02-24📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2015-07-15➕SMITH, Ann Marie appointeddirector
- 2010-07-13🏢Company incorporatedAs ADRIAN SMITH RATING LIMITED
- 2010-07-13➕SMITH, Charles Adrian appointeddirector
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "SMITH" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 69 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 16 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 69. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 16 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
cleanShareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Charles Adrian Smith Individual · British · DOB 04/1957 · age 69 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 13/07/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Financial services · HU postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4A SECURITY LIMITED→ 16838793 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| A&L FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS LTD→ 09731522 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ACCESS FINANCIAL CONSULTANCY LIMITED→ 11421636 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ACTIVE INVESTMENT MANAGERS LIMITED→ 02140781 · est 1987 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 38y | — | — |
| AD INVESTMENTS INTERNATIONAL LTD→ 15269820 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ADIRA FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD→ 13837648 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ALDGATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 16689555 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ALDGATE WEALTH PLANNING LTD→ 14175832 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| AMHT FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 09682006 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ANDREW PIPER FINANCIAL PLANNING LTD→ 06944469 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| ANTONY DICKSON LTD→ 07558942 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| ANVESHAN VENTURES LIMITED→ 16340306 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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 →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
Registered office
Filing status
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.