ANOVA HOLDINGS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
13223194 · ltd · incorporated 2021-02-24
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 Feb 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
76/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Activities of other holding companies n.e.c.
Sector: Financial & insurance
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 68100Buying and selling of own real estate
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 76/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (60/100, director aged 72). 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: high (82/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Company profile
address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 5 total, 5 with control declared
90
Director network
10 connected companies via shared directors
75
Filing history
22 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
76/100Strong
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
90
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 · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-02-28 | 2024-02-28 |
|---|
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-19📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-10-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-29📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-04-26📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-04-26📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2024-04-26📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2024-02-20➖ALLEN, John Victor resigneddirector
- 2024-02-20📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2024-02-20📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-10-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-02-26📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2023-02-26📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2023-02-26📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2023-02-26📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-02-26📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2023-02-24➕ALLEN, John Victor appointeddirector
- 2023-02-24➖ALLEN, John Victor resigneddirector
- 2022-03-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-24🏢Company incorporatedAs ANOVA HOLDINGS LIMITED
- 2021-02-24➕STEARS, Matthew David appointeddirector
- 2021-02-24➕ALLEN, John Victor appointeddirector
- 2021-02-24📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
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 72 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
75/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 72 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- 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
3 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Stephen Shaw Individual · British · DOB 08/1962 · age 64 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 01/04/2024 |
Mr Jamie Neil Marlow Individual · British · DOB 08/1980 · age 46 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 01/04/2024 |
Mr Matthew David Stears Individual · Irish · DOB 11/1956 · age 70 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 24/02/2023 |
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Mr John Victor Allenceased 20/02/2024· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence · firm interest
- Mr John Victor Allenceased 24/02/2023· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Holding company · AL postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALBENY GATE 4 RTM COMPANY LTD→ 15889384 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ASHCROFT COURT (HEMEL HEMPSTEAD) RESIDENTS' ASSOCIATION LIMITED→ 01017770 · est 1971 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 54y | — | — |
| AURON HOLDINGS LTD→ 16820386 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BEACON HOUSE ST ALBANS RTM COMPANY LIMITED→ 16044038 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BEECHWOOD FINANCIAL SERVICES (HOLDINGS) LIMITED→ 09412252 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| BETTESPOL MEADOWS MANAGEMENT COMPANY LIMITED→ 04136286 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| BHANA LIMITED→ 16386798 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BISCOFF PROPERTY HOLDCO LIMITED→ 13120632 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| BLACK & WHITE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT LTD→ 12021988 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BLACKMORE MANOR MANAGEMENT COMPANY LIMITED→ 02786091 · est 1993 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 33y | — | — |
| BLETCHLEY INDUSTRIES LIMITED→ 16327687 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BLINK CHARGING HOLDINGS UK LIMITED→ 09444791 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2021-02-24
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC64209 — Activities of other holding companies n.e.c.
Registered office
27b Bowers Way
Harpenden
AL5 4EP
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-11-30
Last made up to: 2025-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-09
Last: 2026-02-23
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
STEARS, Matthew David→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2021-02-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ALLEN, John Victor→
Resigneddirector · ~90y · appointed 2023-02-24 · resigned 2024-02-20
ALLEN, John Victor→
Resigneddirector · ~90y · appointed 2021-02-24 · resigned 2023-02-24
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (22 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-09
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-01-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-10-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-10-04
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-04-29
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-04-26
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2024-04-26
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2024-04-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-06
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-02-20
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-02-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-10-17
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2023-02-26
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2023-02-26