FARMVIEW DAIRIES LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
NI026689 · ltd · incorporated 1992-06-16
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.
Why now
Window opening · high confidence
More negotiable than before — 4 signals weakening over the last 30 days.
  • · Hygiene score: 90 → 50
  • · Bankability: 67 → 47
  • · Deal-killer verdict: workable → complicated
  • · Opportunity score: 82 → 72
Opportunity decay
softening · 6-months
Softening — cumulative signals suggest this becomes more negotiable over the next 3–6 months.
  • · 4 recent signals weakening vs 0 strengthening
What changed my view
Last 30 days

Picture worsened over the last 30 days — 4 negative signals vs 0 positive.

  • Deal-killer verdict: workablecomplicated
  • Opportunity score: 8272
  • Hygiene score: 9050
  • Bankability: 6747
Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
Upgrade to see
Turnover
year to Aug 2024
Net worth
book net assets
Opportunity
72/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 46330
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 72/100 (strong), bankability 47/100. Strong seller-intent signal (65/100, director aged 63). Asset purchase likely safer than share purchase given structural signals. Biggest value-creation lever: File overdue accounts. Clears statutory overdue flag — immediate bankability uplift for refinance conversations. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (53/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 15.2y

15/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 15.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

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
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
89 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
72/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
55
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
Net Worth
Current Assets
Current Liabilities
£0£0£0£0£0£0Aug 2023Aug 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2024-08-312023-08-31
Average employees36003200

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

2 signals 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
1
filing
  • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
  1. 2024-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-05-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-05-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-09-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-01-21
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  6. 2022-01-20
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland (As Security Trustee)
  7. 2021-02-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2020-05-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2019-05-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2018-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-11-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-06-23
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  13. 2016-01-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2015-06-25
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2014-11-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2014-06-26
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  17. 2012-01-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland as Security Trustee for Itself and for Bank of Ireland (UK) PLC
  18. 2011-05-06
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland
  19. 2010-06-21
    MCDOWELL, Thomas Henry Whyte resigned
    director
  20. 1992-06-16
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As FARMVIEW DAIRIES LIMITED
  21. 1992-06-16
    MCDOWELL, William Richard appointed
    secretary
  22. 1992-06-16
    MCDOWELL, William Richard appointed
    director
  23. 1992-06-16
    MCDOWELL, Thomas Henry Whyte appointed
    director

Owner dependency

93/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 34 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

90/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 34 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 34 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

1 high ·
Accounts overdue
high

Statutory accounts have not been filed by their due date. Can indicate admin breakdown, cash preservation, or deliberate delay.

Evidence: Next due: 2026-05-31

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr William Richard Mcdowell
Individual · British · DOB 02/1963 · age 63
75100%
75-100% shares06/04/2016

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 →

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

10 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
Incorporated1992-06-16
Jurisdictionnorthern-ireland
Primary SIC46330 — SIC 46330

Registered office

76 Church Street
Portadown
Co Armagh
BT62 3EU

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31OVERDUE
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last: 2026-06-16

Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)

MCDOWELL, William Richard
secretary · appointed 1992-06-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
MCDOWELL, William Richard
director · ~63y · appointed 1992-06-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
MCDOWELL, Thomas Henry Whyte
director · ~61y · appointed 1992-06-16 · resigned 2010-06-21
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
3
Outstanding
3
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland (As Security Trustee)
A registered charge1 property20/01/2022
outstanding
The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland as Security Trustee for Itself and for Bank of Ireland (UK)
The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland as Security Trustee for Itself and for Bank of Ireland (UK) PLC
Indenture of mortgage/charge1 property12/01/2012
outstanding
The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland
Debenture1 property06/05/2011
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (89 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-06-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-05-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-22
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2022-01-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-02-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-05-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-06-25