HOWE INNS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
SC292040 · ltd · incorporated 2005-10-20
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 Nov 2024
Net worth
£82.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Public houses and bars
Sector: Accommodation & food service
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 76-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 76). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -69% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 20.5y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 20.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (77/100)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
4 officers (2 active, 4 linked, 2 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
56 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
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 · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £82,763
Cash draining
Cash down 69% YoY
Cash YoY
-69%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£2k
↓ 69% YoY
Net Worth
£83k
~ YoY
Current Assets
£8k
↓ 38% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £104.1k | £107.5k |
| Current assets | £8.0k | £12.9k |
| Cash | £2.3k | £7.3k |
| Net assets | £82.8k | £82.4k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
- 2025-03-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-20📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2024-11-20📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2024-11-20📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2024-11-20📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2024-11-19➕HUNTER, Patricia appointeddirector
- 2024-11-19➖HUNTER, Robert William resigneddirector
- 2024-02-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-17📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2021-02-17📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2021-02-17🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2021-02-17🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2020-08-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-06-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2007-10-01➕HUNTER, Patricia appointedsecretary
- 2007-09-19➖PURPLE VENTURE SECRETARIES LIMITED resignedcorporate-secretary
- 2005-12-08🔒Charge registered #2Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
- 2005-11-03🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
- 2005-10-20🏢Company incorporatedAs HOWE INNS LIMITED
- 2005-10-20➕PURPLE VENTURE SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-secretary
- 2005-10-20➕HUNTER, Robert William appointeddirector
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 76 — 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 76 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
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mrs Patricia Hunter Individual · British · DOB 08/1950 · age 76 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 19/11/2024 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr Robert William Hunterceased 19/11/2024· 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.
Similar companies
Active · Hospitality · KY postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIFE INNS (CUPAR) LIMITED→ SC118700 · est 1989 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 36y | — | — |
| GALLOWHILL (COMMERCIAL) LIMITED→ SC815315 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| HANCOCK HOSPITALITY LTD→ SC865657 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HAWKSWOOD RESORT DEVELOPMENT LIMITED→ SC656585 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| J LI GLASGOW LTD→ SC777801 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| KASDUN LIMITED→ SC698888 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| KINGASK PROPERTIES LTD→ SC856262 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| KINNETTLES CASTLE LIMITED→ SC541159 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| KINNEUCHAR INN PUB COMPANY LTD→ SC635331 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| KINROSS ED LIMITED→ SC857822 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| KIRKCALDY HOUSE SPICE LTD→ SC705827 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| KIRKGATE BARS LTD→ SC821001 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2005-10-20
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC56302 — Public houses and bars
Registered office
1 Dean Park Grove
Chapel
Kirkcaldy
Fife
KY2 6GB
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-08-31
Last made up to: 2024-11-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-25
Last: 2026-02-11
Officers (2 active · 2 resigned)
Active
HUNTER, Patricia→
Activedirector · ~76y · appointed 2024-11-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
PURPLE VENTURE SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-secretary · appointed 2005-10-20 · resigned 2007-09-19
HUNTER, Robert William→
Resigneddirector · ~77y · appointed 2005-10-20 · resigned 2024-11-19
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland | Standard security | 1 property | 08/12/2005 | 17/02/2021 | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland | Bond & floating charge | 1 property | 03/11/2005 | 17/02/2021 |
Recent filings (56 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-25
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-11-20
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-11-20
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-20
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-11-20
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2024-11-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-04-07