A few more thoughts on Shake Shack now that they've said they're "giving back" their small business loan. (1/7)

First, as has been discussed by @Zachary, there's not really a way to "give back" a loan. They can pre-pay it to JPMorgan, but the program didn't contemplate scenarios like this. What happens to that $10 million? (2/7)

Next, Shake Shack's 8K filing with the SEC is interesting. They expect "continued growth in 2021 & beyond, & [believe] additional & improved development opportunities may be available over time due to the impact of COVID-19 on the overall retail & real estate environment." (3/7)

What does that mean? I don't know for sure, but to me it sounds like they expect to gobble up cheap real estate as other businesses shutter because of the virus. I could be wrong, though. (4/7)

Also, note in their 8K that Shake Shack drew down on a $50 million line of credit from Wells Fargo. This is a big advantage that established chain restaurants have versus small and independent restaurants. (5/7)

Finally, note that Shake Shack is an Emerging Growth Company - a designation Congress created in 2012 to help mid-sized companies like this access equity markets. These loosened investor protection rules mean that they can go to market faster. (6/7)

What does this all mean? Shake Shack is giving up the loan, & technically they did nothing wrong, playing by the rules as written. But Congress should probably tighten the small business program for next time. Chains like Shake Shack already have a lot of advantages.(7/7)