DEERNESS VALLEY DAIRY LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
13069412 · ltd · incorporated 2020-12-08
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
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 01420
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. 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 (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 4.1y
35/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Charge age ~4.1 years — mid-life; refi window approaching.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (56/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (1 active, 4 linked, 4 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
25 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
65
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
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
- 2025-08-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-07-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-23📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2022-06-17🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Hsbc UK Bank PLC
- 2022-05-18📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2022-05-11📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-03-12📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2022-03-01📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2021-08-03✏️certificate-change-of-name-companychange-of-name · CERTNM
- 2021-07-22📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-07-22📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2021-07-22📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-07-22📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-07-22📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2021-07-22📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2021-07-01➕ARMSTRONG, Cyrus appointeddirector
- 2021-07-01➖LAW, James David Francis resigneddirector
- 2021-07-01➖PFISTERER SOARES PEREIRA, Fernanda resigneddirector
- 2021-07-01➖WHEAL, Ian Geoffrey resigneddirector
- 2021-02-10📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-02-10📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2021-02-10📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2021-02-08➕PFISTERER SOARES PEREIRA, Fernanda appointeddirector
- 2020-12-08🏢Company incorporatedAs DEERNESS VALLEY DAIRY LIMITED
- 2020-12-08➕LAW, James David Francis appointeddirector
- 2020-12-08➕WHEAL, Ian Geoffrey appointeddirector
- 2020-12-08📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
83/100
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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
55/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
- 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 Cyrus Armstrong Individual · British · DOB 12/1964 · age 62 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 01/07/2021 |
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Mr James David Francis Lawceased 01/07/2021· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
- Mr Ian Geoffrey Whealceased 08/02/2021· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Agriculture · DL postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BEE RESPONSIBLE LIMITED→ 11349831 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BOLTON HALL LIVERY STABLES LIMITED→ 10525212 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| CAMPHILL DEVELOPMENT LIMITED→ 08965995 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| D T DINSDALE & SON LIMITED→ 16866451 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| D. RICHARDSON & COMPANY LIMITED→ 02682387 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 34y | — | — |
| D&S SPENCE AND SON→ 16916374 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DALES LAND MANAGEMENT LTD→ 11947923 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| DALFOR LIMITED→ 11282858 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| DAVID SWINBANK LIMITED→ 09469876 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| DEERE STREET FARM LTD→ 14327440 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| DINSDALE FARMING LIMITED→ 08036203 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| DJ FALL LIMITED→ 14268971 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
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.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2020-12-08
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01420 — SIC 01420
Registered office
High Hedley Hope Farm
East Hedley Hope
Bishop Auckland
DL13 4PR
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-18
Last: 2025-08-04
Officers (1 active · 3 resigned)
ARMSTRONG, Cyrus→
Activedirector · ~62y · appointed 2021-07-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
LAW, James David Francis→
Resigneddirector · ~45y · appointed 2020-12-08 · resigned 2021-07-01
PFISTERER SOARES PEREIRA, Fernanda→
Resigneddirector · ~49y · appointed 2021-02-08 · resigned 2021-07-01
WHEAL, Ian Geoffrey→
Resigneddirector · ~44y · appointed 2020-12-08 · resigned 2021-07-01
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 | 17/06/2022 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (25 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-08-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-07
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2022-06-23
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2022-05-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-17
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-05-11
dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspended
dissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
2022-03-12
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2022-03-01
certificate-change-of-name-company
change-of-name · CERTNM
2021-08-03