ASHLEY AT THE UNICORN LTD
💤Zombieactive
11562480 · ltd · incorporated 2018-09-11
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 Sept 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
74/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Public houses and bars
Sector: Accommodation & food service
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and acceptable with review structure.
Opportunity 74/100 (strong), bankability 65/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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 (58/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
4 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 7.6y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 7.6 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · 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
4 charges (4/4 with lender, 4/4 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
29 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
74/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
65
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
55
Some acquirability indicators.
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 | 2024-09-30 | 2023-09-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 400 | 400 |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (29 events)Click to expand
- 2025-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-06-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-05📄change-person-director-companyofficers · CH01
- 2023-09-05📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2023-09-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-04📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2023-09-04📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-09-04📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-09-04📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2023-09-04📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-08-31➖HILTON, Porsha Louise resigneddirector
- 2023-08-29📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2023-07-31➕STEPHENS, Ashley Leighton appointeddirector
- 2023-07-31➖STEPHENS, Ashley Leighton resigneddirector
- 2022-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-06📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charles-court-order-extend-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2022-01-12📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2022-01-12🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Nationwide Finance Limited
- 2022-01-11📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2022-01-08🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Nationwide Finance Limited
- 2021-11-10🔒Charge registered #4Lender: Nationwide Finance Limited
- 2021-09-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-29📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-01-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-03-16📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-11-05🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Alfandari Private Equities LTD
- 2018-09-11🏢Company incorporatedAs ASHLEY AT THE UNICORN LTD
- 2018-09-11➕HILTON, Porsha Louise appointeddirector
- 2018-09-11➕STEPHENS, Ashley Leighton appointeddirector
Owner dependency
75/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
45/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
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 Ashley Leighton Stephens Individual · British · DOB 06/1973 · age 53 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 11/09/2018 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Miss Porsha Louise Hiltonceased 31/07/2023· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Hospitality · NP postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A LITTLE CHATTER LTD→ 15883766 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ABDUR RAHMAN LTD→ 16490092 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ADEFEREDIG CBC→ 16663238 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ADFER ESTATES LIMITED→ 16671312 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANGELS HOTEL LIMITED→ 12832534 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ANNETTE'S CAFE DINER LIMITED→ 04940752 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ANTALYA DELICIOUS LTD→ 16671629 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ARCADIA AFTER HOURS LIMITED→ 15505177 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ARCHIE WILLIAMS & CO LTD→ 12824325 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ASC CATERING LTD→ 14423174 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ASHVALE CLUB LTD→ 16646685 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ASIAN LOUNGE LIMITED→ 16399559 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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
Incorporated2018-09-11
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC56302 — Public houses and bars
Registered office
The Unicorn Hotel
Albion Road
Pontypool
NP4 6LE
Wales
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last made up to: 2024-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-16
Last: 2025-09-02
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
STEPHENS, Ashley Leighton→
Activedirector · ~53y · appointed 2023-07-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HILTON, Porsha Louise→
Resigneddirector · ~41y · appointed 2018-09-11 · resigned 2023-08-31
STEPHENS, Ashley Leighton→
Resigneddirector · ~53y · appointed 2018-09-11 · resigned 2023-07-31
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
4
Total charges
4
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:4 of 4 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Nationwide Finance Nationwide Finance Limited | A registered charge | 7 properties | 12/01/2022 | — | |
| outstanding | Nationwide Finance Nationwide Finance Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 08/01/2022 | — | |
| outstanding | Nationwide Finance Nationwide Finance Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 10/11/2021 | — | |
| outstanding | Alfandari Private Equities Alfandari Private Equities LTD | A registered charge | 7 properties | 05/11/2018 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (29 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-06-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-06-28
change-person-director-company
officers · CH01
2023-09-05
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2023-09-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-04
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-04
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2023-09-04
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-09-04
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-09-04
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2023-09-04
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-09-04
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2023-08-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-27