BILL SHEPHERD LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
07564161 · ltd · incorporated 2011-03-15
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: Accounting and auditing activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 77-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 77). 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, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (1 active, 2 linked, 1 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
40 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
0
filings
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-01-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-02-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-06-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2023-05-15
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  6. 2023-03-31
    ➖
    SHEPHERD, Edmund James resigned
    secretary
  7. 2022-03-21
    📍
    change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-address
    address · AD02
  8. 2022-02-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-12-31
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  10. 2021-11-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2021-06-11
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  12. 2021-03-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2019-12-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2018-07-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-07-16
    📄
    appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP03
  16. 2018-07-09
    ➕
    SHEPHERD, Edmund James appointed
    secretary
  17. 2018-05-21
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  18. 2018-05-21
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  19. 2011-03-15
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As BILL SHEPHERD LIMITED
  20. 2011-03-15
    ➕
    SHEPHERD, William Ralph appointed
    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 "SHEPHERD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 15 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 77 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

98/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 77 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 15 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
Mr William Ralph Shepherd
Individual · British · DOB 02/1949 · age 77
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

8 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
Typeltd
Incorporated2011-03-15
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC69201 — Accounting and auditing activities

Registered office

The Coach House High Head
Ivegill
Carlisle
Cumbria
CA4 0PN
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-29
Last: 2026-03-15

Officers (1 active · 1 resigned)

SHEPHERD, William Ralph→
director · ~77y · appointed 2011-03-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SHEPHERD, Edmund James→
secretary · appointed 2018-07-09 · resigned 2023-03-31
Resigned

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

Recent filings (40 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-04-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-01-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-02-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-06-08
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2023-05-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-21
change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-address
address · AD02
2022-03-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-02-09
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2021-12-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-11-09
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-06-11