ELLEN ST BUSINESS SERVICES LTD.
💤Zombieactive
SC406056 · ltd · incorporated 2011-08-24
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 Aug 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Non-trading company
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueDormant / non-trading with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 72). 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 (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: high (81/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
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
6 officers (1 active, 6 linked, 5 with DOB)
87
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
7 connected companies via shared directors
66
Filing history
39 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-08-31 | 2023-08-31 |
|---|
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
- 2025-05-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-05📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2024-03-05📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2024-03-04✏️certificate-change-of-name-companychange-of-name · CERTNM
- 2023-05-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-05-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-05-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-05-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-02-14📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2017-02-14📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2017-01-01➕DYER, Thomas appointeddirector
- 2017-01-01➖DYER, Owen Thomas resigneddirector
- 2016-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2013-06-01➕DYER, Owen Thomas appointeddirector
- 2013-06-01➖TRAINER, Peter resigneddirector
- 2011-08-24🏢Company incorporatedAs ELLEN ST BUSINESS SERVICES LTD.
- 2011-08-24➕TRAINER, Peter appointedsecretary
- 2011-08-24➖TRAINER, Peter resignedsecretary
- 2011-08-24➕MCINTOSH, Susan appointeddirector
- 2011-08-24➖MCINTOSH, Susan resigneddirector
- 2011-08-24➕TRAINER, Peter appointeddirector
- 2011-08-24➖TRAINER, Peter resigneddirector
- 2011-08-24➕TRAINER, Peter 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 72 — 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 72 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Thomas Dyer Individual · British · DOB 10/1954 · age 72 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 01/03/2024 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr Owen Thomas Dyerceased 01/03/2024· 75-100% shares
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 · Holding company · EH postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FALS 2 LIMITED→ SC667780 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| FAM TAXIS LTD→ SC866070 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| FERNVIEW LIMITED→ SC200051 · est 1999 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 26y | — | — |
| FHW HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC655355 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| FINTECH ACCOUNTING SOLUTIONS LTD→ SC607990 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| FIP GP LIMITED→ SC417115 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| FIREMAC HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC711166 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| FIRSTMINUTE CAPITAL IV HOLDCO 2 LTD→ SC873131 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| FLANNELLY HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC548054 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| FM INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC590004 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| FORBES BR HOLDINGS LTD→ SC880777 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| FORBES EBC HOLDING LTD→ SC849449 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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
Incorporated2011-08-24
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC74990 — Non-trading company
Registered office
27 Lauriston Street
Edinburgh
Midlothian
EH3 9DQ
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-07
Last: 2025-08-24
Officers (1 active · 5 resigned)
DYER, Thomas→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2017-01-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
TRAINER, Peter→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2011-08-24 · resigned 2011-08-24
DYER, Owen Thomas→
Resigneddirector · ~36y · appointed 2013-06-01 · resigned 2017-01-01
MCINTOSH, Susan→
Resigneddirector · ~56y · appointed 2011-08-24 · resigned 2011-08-24
TRAINER, Peter→
Resigneddirector · ~74y · appointed 2011-08-24 · resigned 2011-08-24
TRAINER, Peter→
Resigneddirector · ~74y · appointed 2011-08-24 · resigned 2013-06-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (39 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-05-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-03-12
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2024-03-05
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-03-05
certificate-change-of-name-company
change-of-name · CERTNM
2024-03-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-05-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2020-05-25