Shake Shack has shook it way on the stock market as it made a debut on Friday morning. The famous New York burger chain, which started over a decade ago in a hotdog cart, has increased its shares value during their first trading day on Jan. 30. Reuters revealed the trendy hamburger company reached the value of almost $2 billion.
With only 63 restaurants to date globally, Shake Shack was once just an ordinary hotdog cart in Madison Square Park in Manhattan, its official Web site stated. It was established in 2014 and is famous for its modern-day "roadside" burger stand that offers the most delicious burgers, hotdogs, frozen custard, shakes, beer, wine and more. It soon become an instant community fixture that introduced fresh and simple yet "high-quality versions of the classics in a majestic setting."
As Shake Shack makes a scorching stock market debut Friday, it shares soared to almost 150 percent. On the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Jan. 30 afternoon trade, The Washington Post revealed the company's shares increased to $48.31 compared to its late Thursday's offer price of $21.
Because of the trendy burger chain far above expected range value, the share price has raised questions whether the stock was overvalued. In earlier trading, the shares even reached a peak of $52.50. According to CNN Money, at its $21 per share, the company raised $105 million, making its worth a whopping $745.5 million.
Since Shake Shack began in 2001, it has quickly become a Big Apple icon. Though its expansion is quite slow, The Wall Street Journal reported the burger chain expects to open at least 450 domestic Shake Shack branches in the beginning of the 2015 fiscal period.
As Shake Shack shakes the stock market and become one of the most commercially successful restaurant chain, some other fast-food company felt threatened of the sudden rise. But CEO Randy Garutti said in an interview with Fox Business, the success of the company was merely an accident.
"This thing was an accident. We were born from a hot dog cart. Our only goal was to support an art project," Garutti stated. "We never dreamed that there would be a second Shake Shack."
Shake Shack might become the world's largest burger chain in the future. Due to the foreseen possibility, notorious fast-food company McDonald's Corp. has reportedly changed its leadership amid worsening sales declines in its core U.S. market. Fast-casual restaurants like Shake Shack, which are winning younger consumers with fresher and more customized offerings are usually blamed of the fall.
Meanwhile, as stock market's fast-rising star, Shake Shack, celebrates its first day as a public company, the burger chain turned the New York Stock Exchange into the "New York SHACK Exchange." And the transformation simply meant Shake Shack food trucks were parked in front of the NYSE offering free food.
