DAVIDSON & SHIRLEY LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC339565 · ltd · incorporated 2008-03-13
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£505.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Solicitors
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 65-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 65). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -55% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 15.5y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 15.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Cashflow trend is negative — lender view likely cautious.
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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (4 active, 7 linked, 5 with DOB)
84
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
52 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
83/100Exceptional
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
85
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 declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £505,489
Net assets shrinking
Down £213,595 YoY
Cash draining
Cash down 55% YoY
Cash YoY
-55%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£174k
↓ 55% YoY
Net Worth
£505k
↓ 30% YoY
Current Assets
£350k
↓ 36% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £508.2k | £722.3k |
| Current assets | £349.6k | £549.7k |
| Cash | £173.6k | £384.4k |
| Debtors | £176.0k | £165.3k |
| Net assets | £505.5k | £719.1k |
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 (30 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-15📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2024-10-15📄appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP03
- 2024-10-15📄capital-name-of-class-of-sharescapital · SH08
- 2024-10-09📄memorandum-articlesincorporation · MA
- 2024-10-09📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2024-10-09📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2024-10-09📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2024-10-09📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2024-10-01➕FRAME, Laura Jane appointeddirector
- 2024-09-26➕TENNANT, William appointedsecretary
- 2024-09-26➕SNEDDON, Walter Scott appointeddirector
- 2024-09-26➖ROBERTSON, James resignedsecretary
- 2024-09-26➖TENNANT, William resigneddirector
- 2023-11-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-11📄capital-allotment-sharescapital · SH01
- 2021-10-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-14📄capital-return-purchase-own-sharescapital · SH03
- 2021-04-23📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-04-23📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2021-02-28➖GRAY, Robert Colin resigneddirector
- 2020-12-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2010-10-22🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2008-03-13🏢Company incorporatedAs DAVIDSON & SHIRLEY LIMITED
- 2008-03-13➕ROBERTSON, James appointeddirector
- 2008-03-13➕ROBERTSON, James appointedsecretary
- 2008-03-13➕GRAY, Robert Colin appointeddirector
- 2008-03-13➕TENNANT, William appointeddirector
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
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 18 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
63/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 18 years.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr James Robertson Individual · British · DOB 05/1961 · age 65 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Mr William Tennant Individual · British · DOB 08/1953 · age 73 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Robert Colin Grayceased 28/02/2021· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
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 · Professional services · ML postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMM COMMISSIONING & COMPLETIONS LTD→ SC576965 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| COMPASS AVIATION SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ SC757442 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| CP PROPERTIES LTD→ SC522051 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| CRK CONSULTANTS LTD.→ SC699996 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| DARCY HOLDINGS LTD→ SC879884 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DEK LAW LIMITED→ SC721327 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| DICK PEDDIE & MCKAY LIMITED→ SC361892 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| DIMENSIONAL AND METROLOGY CONTROL LTD→ SC821820 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| DÌON HSE LTD→ SC804854 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| DISCOVERY PERFORMANCE & STRATEGY LIMITED→ SC392756 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| DITTCO LIMITED→ SC524239 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| DIVERSITY CONSULTING LIMITED→ SC246388 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2008-03-13
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC69102 — Solicitors
Registered office
11 Hope Street
Lanark
ML11 7ND
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-27
Last: 2026-03-13
Officers (4 active · 3 resigned)
Active
FRAME, Laura Jane→
Activedirector · ~47y · appointed 2024-10-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ROBERTSON, James→
Activedirector · ~65y · appointed 2008-03-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SNEDDON, Walter Scott→
Activedirector · ~53y · appointed 2024-09-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ROBERTSON, James→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2008-03-13 · resigned 2024-09-26
GRAY, Robert Colin→
Resigneddirector · ~61y · appointed 2008-03-13 · resigned 2021-02-28
TENNANT, William→
Resigneddirector · ~73y · appointed 2008-03-13 · resigned 2024-09-26
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Lloyds Banking Group Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Floating charge | 1 property | 22/10/2010 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (52 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-21
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-28
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-10-15
appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2024-10-15
capital-name-of-class-of-shares
capital · SH08
2024-10-15
memorandum-articles
incorporation · MA
2024-10-09
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2024-10-09
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-10-09
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-10-09
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-10-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-11-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-13