JOHN STUART (FARMS) LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC033883 · ltd · incorporated 1959-04-08
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
What changed my view
Last 30 days

No material changes in the last 30 days.

Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Sept 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
71/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: Non-trading company
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: dormant / non-trading with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 71/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

4 live charges · oldest 59.8y

45/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 59.8 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
4 charges (4/4 with lender, 4/4 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (1 active, 8 linked, 4 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 4 total, 4 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
129 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
71/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
50
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
74
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Sept 2023Sept 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2024-09-302023-09-30
Average employees100100

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

3 signals 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 address
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 address
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (37 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-24
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  2. 2025-06-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-09-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2024-06-15
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  5. 2023-09-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2022-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2021-10-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-10-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-09-22
    ➕
    STUART, Jack appointed
    director
  10. 2021-09-22
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  11. 2021-09-22
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  12. 2021-09-22
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  13. 2021-09-22
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  14. 2021-09-22
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  15. 2021-09-22
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  16. 2021-09-22
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  17. 2021-07-29
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  18. 2021-06-01
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  19. 2020-12-04
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  20. 2020-12-01
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  21. 2020-11-07
    ➖
    STUART, Hazel resigned
    secretary
  22. 2020-11-07
    ➖
    STUART, Hazel resigned
    director
  23. 2019-04-06
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #4
  24. 2019-04-06
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #3
  25. 2019-04-06
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  26. 2014-03-19
    ➖
    STUART, Ian resigned
    director
  27. 2012-10-30
    ➕
    STUART, Hazel appointed
    secretary
  28. 2012-10-30
    ➖
    HOUGHTON MELVIN SMITH & CO resigned
    corporate-secretary
  29. 2012-09-10
    ➕
    STUART, Hazel appointed
    director
  30. 1990-05-30
    ➖
    STUART, George Esslemont resigned
    director
  31. 1990-05-30
    ➖
    STUART, John Robertson resigned
    director
  32. 1990-05-28
    ➖
    STUART, Elsie Mitchell resigned
    director
  33. 1988-01-21
    🔒
    Charge registered #4
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
  34. 1987-01-20
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
  35. 1981-07-20
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
  36. 1966-07-26
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
  37. 1959-04-08
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As JOHN STUART (FARMS) LIMITED

Owner dependency

90/100
Critical — business is the founder

The 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 name in company name: Company name contains director surname "STUART" — strong identity link between founder and business.

Succession & seller-readiness

55/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 67 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

1 med · 1 low
Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
medium

Multiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.

Multiple registered office changes
low

Multiple address changes in a short period can indicate operational instability or admin disorder.

Shareholders & ownership

3 active beneficial owners · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Simon Greatbatch
Individual · British · DOB 03/1976 · age 50
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control22/09/2021
Mr Jack Stuart
Individual · British · DOB 05/1988 · age 38
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control22/09/2021
Mr Alan Lee Greatbatch
Individual · British · DOB 03/1973 · age 53
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control22/09/2021
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mrs Hazel Stuartceased 07/11/2020· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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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
Incorporated1959-04-08
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC74990 — Non-trading company

Registered office

80 Osprey Rise
Inverurie
Aberdeenshire
AB51 6AU
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last made up to: 2024-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-18
Last: 2026-02-04

Officers (1 active · 7 resigned)

STUART, Jack→
director · ~38y · appointed 2021-09-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
STUART, Hazel→
secretary · appointed 2012-10-30 · resigned 2020-11-07
Resigned
HOUGHTON MELVIN SMITH & CO→
corporate-secretary · resigned 2012-10-30
Resigned
STUART, Elsie Mitchell→
director · resigned 1990-05-28
Resigned
STUART, George Esslemont→
director · ~96y · resigned 1990-05-30
Resigned
STUART, Hazel→
director · ~77y · appointed 2012-09-10 · resigned 2020-11-07
Resigned
STUART, Ian→
director · ~95y · resigned 2014-03-19
Resigned
STUART, John Robertson→
director · resigned 1990-05-30
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

4
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:4 of 4 shown
TypeProperties
satisfied
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
Standard security1 property21/01/198806/04/2019
satisfied
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
Floating charge1 property20/01/198706/04/2019
satisfied
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
Standard security1 property20/07/198106/04/2019
outstanding
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
Disposition and explanatory letter1 property26/07/1966—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (129 total)

change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-04-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-06-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-09-25
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-06-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-10-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-10-29
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2021-09-22
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2021-09-22