DEVONIA WATER LTD
💤Zombieactive
08960379 · ltd · incorporated 2014-03-26
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 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 11070
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 66-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 66). 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).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 0.1y
10/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Newest facility, 0.1 years old — likely still in initial term.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
35 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|
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
4
filings
- • 1 mortgage
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 persons-with-significant-control
Last 180 days
4
filings
- • 1 mortgage
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 persons-with-significant-control
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2026-05-05📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2026-04-30🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Hsbc UK Bank PLC
- 2026-04-10📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-control-without-name-datepersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2026-04-09📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-11-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-07-27📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2023-07-26📄withdrawal-of-a-person-with-significant-control-statementpersons-with-significant-control · PSC09
- 2022-07-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-10-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-02-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-06-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-02-07📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-09-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2015-04-17➖LETHBRIDGE, Trevor Ronald resigneddirector
- 2015-02-12➖HILDER, Clare Lisa resigneddirector
- 2014-03-26🏢Company incorporatedAs DEVONIA WATER LTD
- 2014-03-26➕GRAHAM, Neil Osbern Nigel appointeddirector
- 2014-03-26➕HILDER, Clare Lisa appointeddirector
- 2014-03-26➕LETHBRIDGE, Trevor Ronald appointeddirector
Owner dependency
90/100
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 age: Director aged approximately 66 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
78/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 66. 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 12 years.
- 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 Neil Osbern Nigel Graham Individual · British · DOB 12/1960 · age 66 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 24/07/2023 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB SEAFOODS (DEVON) LIMITED→ 09666808 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
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| AT 36 MIDDLE STREET LTD→ 16365791 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BAYS BREWERY LIMITED→ 05904714 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
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| BLOOM BARS & EVENTS LTD→ 11835728 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BORN ALCOHOL FREE LIMITED→ 12167286 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BOWERMAN'S BREWERY LTD→ 12011859 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BREWHAHA! LTD→ 12821638 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| BRIXHAM MAID LTD→ 10536903 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| BUCKFAST ORGANIC BAKERY LIMITED→ 04960690 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
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.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2014-03-26
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC11070 — SIC 11070
Registered office
Foxdown Landscove Landscove
Ashburton
Newton Abbot
Devon
TQ13 7LT
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-04-09
Last: 2026-03-26
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
GRAHAM, Neil Osbern Nigel→
Activedirector · ~66y · appointed 2014-03-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HILDER, Clare Lisa→
Resigneddirector · ~67y · appointed 2014-03-26 · resigned 2015-02-12
LETHBRIDGE, Trevor Ronald→
Resigneddirector · ~70y · appointed 2014-03-26 · resigned 2015-04-17
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc UK Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 30/04/2026 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (35 total)
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2026-05-05
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-20
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control-without-name-date
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2026-04-10
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-04-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-11-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-04-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-11-27
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2023-07-27
withdrawal-of-a-person-with-significant-control-statement
persons-with-significant-control · PSC09
2023-07-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-07-01
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-10-25