COWEN BD LIMITED
⚰️Wound downdissolved
SC415168 · ltd · incorporated 2012-01-23
Investment thesis
Company dissolved — not a live target.
Why interesting: Historical record only; useful for precedent research.
Why risky: Not transactable.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
60/100
Worth a look
What this business does
Primary activity: Management consultancy activities other than financial management
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed unclear — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 60/100 (worth a look), bankability 70/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 66). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Company dissolved. Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (57/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
23 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
60/100Worth a look
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Mixed signal. Worth opening the full target workup before deciding to pursue.
Business quality
30
Concerning — overdue filings or status flags present.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
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 (25 events)Click to expand
- 2019-01-08📄gazette-dissolved-voluntarygazette · GAZ2(A)
- 2019-01-08🏁Company dissolved
- 2018-10-23📄gazette-notice-voluntarygazette · GAZ1(A)
- 2018-10-15📄dissolution-application-strike-off-companydissolution · DS01
- 2018-05-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-05-10📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2018-04-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-01-10📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2017-07-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-08-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-04-25📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2016-04-25📄termination-secretary-companyofficers · TM02
- 2016-04-22➕COWEN, Christine Margaret appointeddirector
- 2016-01-12📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-08-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2015-01-13📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-11-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2014-01-13📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2013-12-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2013-01-10📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2012-11-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2012-02-01📄change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2012-01-23🏢Company incorporatedAs COWEN BD LIMITED
- 2012-01-23➕COWEN, Stuart appointeddirector
- 2012-01-23📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
100/100
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
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "COWEN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 66 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 14 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
69/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 66. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 14 years.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
1 high ·Company dissolved
highCompany has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only.
Evidence: Dissolved on 2019-01-08
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Stuart Cowen Individual · British · DOB 10/1960 · age 66 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
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 · AB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STREAMLINE SHIPPING GROUP LIMITED→ SC131956 · est 1991 | £15.91M £11.73M–£20.10M | — | — | 0 | 35y | 83 | 74y |
| GENERAL OCEANS UK HOLDINGS LTD→ SC308386 · est 2006 | £9.77M £7.20M–£12.34M | — | — | 0 | 19y | 84 | 68y |
| HIGHLAND FUELS HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC215790 · est 2001 | £9.50M £7.00M–£12.00M | — | — | 300 | 25y | 88 | 62y |
| CRAIGSHANNOCH LIMITED→ SC191743 · est 1998 | £5.90M £4.34M–£7.45M | £2.95M | — | 300 | 27y | 88 | 67y |
| T D C PARSONS PEEBLES LIMITED→ SC663297 · est 2020 | £2.76M £2.03M–£3.48M | £11.52M | — | 5100 | 6y | 87 | 77y |
| ROTECH HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC148822 · est 1994 | £1.97M £1.45M–£2.49M | £453.6k | — | 0 | 32y | 92 | 58y |
| WELLTEC (UK) LTD.→ SC204742 · est 2000 | £134.9k £99.4k–£170.4k | £17.23M | — | 3200 | 26y | 93 | 62y |
| ACCURA MEASUREMENT LIMITED→ SC322109 · est 2007 | — | — | £5.47M | — | 19y | 83 | 60y |
| ALLEN ASSOCIATES (H.P.E.) LIMITED→ SC201596 · est 1999 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 26y | 83 | 59y |
| CONNECT NDT LIMITED→ SC205224 · est 2000 | — | — | — | — | 26y | 83 | 70y |
| CUMMING & CO. (ABERDEEN) LTD.→ SC248131 · est 2003 | — | — | £352.1k | — | 23y | 83 | 58y |
| ETPM LIMITED→ SC318161 · est 2007 | — | — | — | 1800 | 19y | 83 | 63y |
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
Statusdissolved
Typeltd
Incorporated2012-01-23
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC70229 — Management consultancy activities other than financial management
Registered office
297 North Deeside Road
Cults
Aberdeen
AB15 9PA
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: —
Last made up to: 2017-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: —
Last: —
Officers (0 active · 0 resigned)
COWEN, Christine Margaret→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2016-04-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
COWEN, Stuart→
Activedirector · ~66y · appointed 2012-01-23
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (23 total)
gazette-dissolved-voluntary
gazette · GAZ2(A)
2019-01-08
gazette-notice-voluntary
gazette · GAZ1(A)
2018-10-23
dissolution-application-strike-off-company
dissolution · DS01
2018-10-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2018-05-10
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2018-05-10
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2018-04-05
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-01-10
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2018-01-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2017-07-03
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2017-01-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2016-08-15
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2016-04-25
termination-secretary-company
officers · TM02
2016-04-25
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2016-01-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2015-08-24