BELFORD SECURITIES LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
SC030386 · ltd · incorporated 1954-11-08
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
—
year to Dec 2024
Net worth
£1.27M
book net assets
Opportunity
74/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate
Sector: Real estate
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 74/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. 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).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
10 officers (2 active, 10 linked, 4 with DOB)
78
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
119 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
🔒Estimated company valuation
Sector-multiple EBITDA, turnover, and NAV-proxy valuation range with confidence tier — derived from extracted iXBRL financials.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Opportunity Score
74/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
55
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £1,272,202
Cash YoY
+7%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£95k
↑ 7.0% YoY
Net Worth
£1.3m
↑ 2.8% YoY
Current Assets
£98k
↑ 8.8% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £1.33M | £1.29M |
| Current assets | £97.9k | £90.0k |
| Cash | £94.6k | £88.4k |
| Debtors | £3.3k | £1.6k |
| Net assets | £1.27M | £1.24M |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (34 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-10📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2022-10-10📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2022-07-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-22➕WILLIAMSON, Tori Barbara Jean appointedsecretary
- 2022-06-22➖WILLIAMSON, James Derek resignedsecretary
- 2022-06-22📄appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP03
- 2022-06-22📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2021-08-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-08➖PRINGLE, Robert Shaun resigneddirector
- 2021-07-08📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-07-08📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-06-18➖DICKINS, Noreen Patricia resigneddirector
- 2020-10-07📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2020-09-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-01➕WILLIAMSON, James Derek appointeddirector
- 2020-07-15➖DICKINS, Peter Vernon resigneddirector
- 2020-07-15📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-07-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-13📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2011-05-05➕WILLIAMSON, James Derek appointedsecretary
- 2011-05-05➖GILLESPIE MACANDREW SECRETARIES LIMITED resignedcorporate-secretary
- 2010-12-01➕PRINGLE, Robert Shaun appointeddirector
- 2006-09-14➕GILLESPIE MACANDREW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-secretary
- 2006-09-13➖PRINGLE, Robert Shaun resignedsecretary
- 2004-09-20➕PRINGLE, Robert Shaun appointedsecretary
- 2004-09-20➖SHAUN PRINGLE AND CO WS resignedcorporate-secretary
- 2002-01-10➕DICKINS, Peter Vernon appointeddirector
- 1993-07-01➕SHAUN PRINGLE AND CO WS appointedcorporate-secretary
- 1993-06-30➖BENNETT & ROBERTSON LLP resignedcorporate-secretary
- 1954-11-08🏢Company incorporatedAs BELFORD SECURITIES LIMITED
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
55/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 71 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
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 James Derek Williamson Individual · British · DOB 01/1970 · age 56 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 10/10/2022 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mrs Noreen Patricia Dickinsceased 21/06/2021· 75-100% shares
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Property · EH postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AWA PROPERTY GROUP LIMITED→ SC777359 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BADGER LAW LIMITED→ SC796333 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BANDEATH HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC584868 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| BANNERMAN DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED→ SC080817 · est 1982 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 43y | — | — |
| BEACONS PLACE LIMITED→ SC309904 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| BEAMER STREET LTD→ SC708440 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| BEAUFORT HIGHLAND LODGES LIMITED→ SC596969 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BELHAVEN DEVELOPMENTS LTD→ SC544489 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| BELLARON 2 LIMITED→ SC585382 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| BELLIS REALTY LTD→ SC841383 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BENCHMARK LETTINGS LIMITED→ SC595971 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BENNETT & COULSON LETTINGS LTD→ SC702005 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1954-11-08
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC68209 — Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate
Registered office
Cowan & Partners 60 Constitution Street
Leith
Edinburgh
Lothian
EH6 6RR
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-23
Last: 2025-11-09
Officers (2 active · 8 resigned)
WILLIAMSON, Tori Barbara Jean→
Activesecretary · appointed 2022-06-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
WILLIAMSON, James Derek→
Activedirector · ~56y · appointed 2020-09-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
PRINGLE, Robert Shaun→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2004-09-20 · resigned 2006-09-13
WILLIAMSON, James Derek→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2011-05-05 · resigned 2022-06-22
BENNETT & ROBERTSON LLP→
Resignedcorporate-secretary · resigned 1993-06-30
GILLESPIE MACANDREW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-secretary · appointed 2006-09-14 · resigned 2011-05-05
SHAUN PRINGLE AND CO WS→
Resignedcorporate-secretary · appointed 1993-07-01 · resigned 2004-09-20
DICKINS, Noreen Patricia→
Resigneddirector · ~97y · resigned 2021-06-18
DICKINS, Peter Vernon→
Resigneddirector · ~87y · appointed 2002-01-10 · resigned 2020-07-15
PRINGLE, Robert Shaun→
Resigneddirector · ~73y · appointed 2010-12-01 · resigned 2021-07-08
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (119 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-08-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-11
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-09
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2022-10-10
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2022-10-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-07-08
appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2022-06-22
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2022-06-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-08-11
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2021-07-08