HIGHLAND BUSINESS ASSOCIATES LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC420088 · ltd · incorporated 2012-03-21
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
—
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
PursueActive trading company. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)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
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
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
40 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
75
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 · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 1 | 100 |
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
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-07-23📍change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD02
- 2025-06-29📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2025-06-27➕MCFARLANE, Dawn Morrison appointeddirector
- 2024-12-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-09📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2022-06-07📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2021-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-07📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2021-07-06📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2021-05-10📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-23📄capital-allotment-sharescapital · SH01
- 2020-08-27📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-12-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2012-03-21🏢Company incorporatedAs HIGHLAND BUSINESS ASSOCIATES LIMITED
- 2012-03-21➕MCFARLANE, Ewan Falconer appointeddirector
Owner dependency
79/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.
- +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
19/100
No succession signalNo meaningful acquirability indicators from public data.
SIGNALS
- primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — MCFARLANE, Dawn Morrison (same surname) appointed 2025-06-27. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
- 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ewan Falconer Mcfarlane Individual · British · DOB 02/1966 · age 60 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Trade services · IV postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HEARTSTONE CONFEDERATION OF INTERNATIONAL STORY CIRCLES CIC→ SC611819 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| HELPING HAND VA LTD→ SC843453 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| HENDERSON GRP LIMITED→ SC549113 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| HERD OF ZEBRAS LTD→ SC867073 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HERMANAS LTD.→ SC242441 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| HIGHER GROUND COMMUNITY SERVICES LIMITED→ SC393728 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| HIGHLAND COMMUNITY INTEREST COMPANY→ SC691555 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| HIGHLAND COPIERS LIMITED→ SC457414 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| HIGHLAND HANGOUT LIMITED→ SC622220 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| HIGHLAND HOUSING ALLIANCE→ SC279579 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| HIGHLAND HUB LTD→ SC862495 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HIGHLAND HYACINTH PIERCING LTD→ SC878928 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
6 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
Incorporated2012-03-21
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Registered office
18 First Field Avenue
North Kessock
Inverness
IV1 3JB
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-04
Last: 2025-07-21
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
MCFARLANE, Dawn Morrison→
Activedirector · ~54y · appointed 2025-06-27
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MCFARLANE, Ewan Falconer→
Activedirector · ~60y · appointed 2012-03-21
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (40 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-19
change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-address
address · AD02
2025-07-23
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-06-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-10-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-12-21
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2022-06-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-08
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2022-06-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-12-16
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2021-07-07
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2021-07-06