RUMOURS (KIRKCALDY) LTD.

💤Zombieactive
SC240082 · ltd · incorporated 2002-11-25
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 Oct 2024
Net worth
£53.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate
Sector: Real estate
Investor take
Pursue
Property-backed borrower with a 61-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 2 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

2 live charges · oldest 22.7y

45/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 22.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
5 officers (1 active, 5 linked, 2 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
60 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
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £53,829
Cash YoY
+25%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£64k
↑ 25% YoY
Net Worth
£54k
↑ 24% YoY
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£13k£26k£38k£51k£64kOct 2023Oct 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2024-10-312023-10-31
Total assets£53.8k£43.4k
Current assets—£51.5k
Cash£64.1k£51.5k
Net assets£53.8k£43.4k

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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-07-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-07-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-06-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-09-23
    ➖
    EDMISTON, William John resigned
    secretary
  5. 2022-09-23
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  6. 2022-09-23
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  7. 2022-07-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-04-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-07-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-07-09
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  11. 2020-06-28
    ➖
    EDMISTON, William John resigned
    director
  12. 2019-02-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2018-02-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2017-02-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-02-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2015-12-09
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  17. 2015-01-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  18. 2003-09-23
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  19. 2003-08-27
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  20. 2002-11-25
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As RUMOURS (KIRKCALDY) LTD.
  21. 2002-11-25
    ➕
    MCALPINE, James appointed
    director
  22. 2002-11-25
    ➕
    EDMISTON, William John appointed
    secretary
  23. 2002-11-25
    ➕
    BRIAN REID LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2002-11-25
    ➖
    BRIAN REID LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2002-11-25
    ➕
    EDMISTON, William John appointed
    director
  26. 2002-11-25
    ➕
    STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  27. 2002-11-25
    ➖
    STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-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 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

clean
No 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
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr James Mcalpine
Individual · Scottish · DOB 11/1965 · age 61
25–50%
25–50%board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control06/04/2016
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mr William John Edmistonceased 23/09/2022· 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.

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MERLIN HOUSE LIMITED→
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£40.5k
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—£40.5k—25y8364y
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
Incorporated2002-11-25
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC68209 — Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate

Registered office

22 Thornhill Drive
Kirkcaldy
Fife
KY2 5BH

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-16
Last: 2025-10-02

Officers (1 active · 4 resigned)

MCALPINE, James→
director · ~61y · appointed 2002-11-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
EDMISTON, William John→
secretary · appointed 2002-11-25 · resigned 2022-09-23
Resigned
BRIAN REID LTD.→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-11-25 · resigned 2002-11-25
Resigned
EDMISTON, William John→
director · ~61y · appointed 2002-11-25 · resigned 2020-06-28
Resigned
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD.→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-11-25 · resigned 2002-11-25
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Standard security1 property23/09/2003—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property27/08/2003—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (60 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-14
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2022-09-23
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2022-09-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-07-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-04-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-10-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-07-30
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2020-07-09