Warren Stephens

Last updated

Warren Stephens
Born
Warren Amerine Stephens

(1957-02-18) February 18, 1957 (age 67)
Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
Education Washington and Lee University (BA)
Wake Forest University (MBA)
Occupation(s)Chairman, President, and CEO of Stephens Inc.
SpouseHarriet Stephens
Children3
Relatives Jackson T. Stephens (Father)

Warren Amerine Stephens (born February 18, 1957) is an American businessman. He is the chairman, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Stephens Inc., a privately held investment bank. [1] Stephens lives in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Contents

Early life and education

Stephens was born in Little Rock, the son of Jackson T. Stephens and Mary Amerine Stephens. Warren's father, "Jack" Stephens, and his uncle, "Witt" Stephens, partnered as investors and financiers in the investment firm, Stephens Inc. [2]

Warren began his education in Little Rock, and in 1975, graduated from Trinity Presbyterian High School in Montgomery, Alabama. He graduated from Washington and Lee University in 1979 with a BA in Economics, and received his MBA from Wake Forest University in 1981. [3]

Career

Stephens joined his father and uncle in the investment banking business in Little Rock, which had 139 employees. At that time, the firm resembled and operated much like one of the old British merchant banks, investing the firm's and family funds in various businesses and ventures, and it still operates the same way today. Stephens Inc is noted for handling the IPO of Wal-Mart Stores in 1970. [2]

Stephens began work as an associate in the corporate finance department, concentrating on oil and gas. He became head of the department in 1983 and spent a lot of time on mergers and acquisitions. On February 18, 1986, Stephens was appointed president and CEO of Stephens Inc. [2]

In 1990, he was the senior advisor to Tyson Foods in their acquisition of Holly Farms in a nine-month takeover battle. [2] He is only the third chairman, president and CEO in the firm's more than 90 years of operations since 1933. [4]

In 2006, Stephens acquired 100 percent of the outstanding shares of Stephens Inc from the other family members. [2]

Stephens serves on the board of Dillard's. [5]

Political involvement

A Republican, he supported Bob Dole in 1996, Steve Forbes in 1999, and has supported Mike Huckabee. [6] Stephens was a bundler for Mitt Romney in 2012. [7] He has been critical of Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. [8] [9] [6] During the 2016 election, Stephens and his brother Jackson Stephens were major financial supporters of the Stop Trump movement. [10]

During the 2020 presidential election, Stephens donated more than $3 million to Super PACs supporting Trump. In the 2024 Republican presidential primaries, Stephenson was a major financial backer of Asa Hutchinson and Nikki Haley. [11] [12] During the 2024 presidential campaign, Stephens also contributed to MAGA Inc., a Super PAC aligned with Donald Trump. [13]

Philanthropy

Stephens served on the board of trustees of his alma mater, Washington and Lee University. [3] Stephens and his wife Harriet are benefactors of various organizations, most notably the Episcopal Collegiate School and the Arkansas Arts Center, both in Little Rock. [14] [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mitt Romney</span> American politician and businessman (born 1947)

Willard Mitt Romney is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer, and the junior United States senator from Utah since 2019. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and was the Republican Party's nominee for president of the United States in the 2012 election, losing to Barack Obama.

Julian Hart Robertson Jr. was an American hedge fund manager, and philanthropist.

Kenneth Gerard Langone Sr. KSG is an American billionaire businessman best known for organizing financing for the founders of The Home Depot. He is a major donor to the Republican Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Murphy (political consultant)</span> American political consultant, writer, and producer (born 1962)

Michael Ellis Murphy is a Republican political consultant, entertainment industry writer, and producer. He advised Republicans including John McCain, Jeb Bush, David Dreier, John Engler, Tommy Thompson, Spencer Abraham, Christine Whitman, Lamar Alexander, Meg Whitman, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Until January 2006, he was an adviser to Republican Mitt Romney. Murphy resigned his position with Romney when his former client John McCain made it clear he would also pursue the Republicans presidential nomination in 2008; Murphy decided to be neutral in the contest between them. Murphy is a vocal Republican critic of President Donald Trump. He endorsed Democratic candidate Joe Biden in the 2020 U.S. Presidential election.

Bobby Jack Perry, known as Bob J. Perry, was a Houston, Texas homebuilder, owner of Perry Homes, and major contributor to a number of politically oriented 527 groups, such as the Swift Vets and POWs for Truth and the Economic Freedom Fund.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Castellanos</span> Cuban American political consultant

Alejandro Castellanos is a Cuban-American political consultant. He has worked on electoral campaigns for Republican candidates including Bob Dole, George W. Bush, Jeb Bush, and Mitt Romney. In 2008, Castellanos, a partner at National Media Inc., co-founded Purple Strategies, a bipartisan communications firm. Castellanos is also a regular guest commentator on Meet the Press and a contributor for CNN.

Stephen Andrew Feinberg is an American businessman and investor active in hedge fund management and private equity. He is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Cerberus Capital Management. As of July 2024, his net worth is US$4.8 billion. In 2017 Cerberus also owned DynCorp, which is a major national security contractor with the US government, charging billions for overseas military and police training. On May 11, 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump named Feinberg to head the President's Intelligence Advisory Board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foster Friess</span> American investment banker and political donor (1940–2021)

Foster Stephen Friess was an American investment manager and prominent donor to the Republican Party and to Christian right causes. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for governor of Wyoming in the 2018 election, losing in the primary to State Treasurer Mark Gordon.

Matthew “Matt” Rhoades is an American political and public affairs consultant. He is cited as a pioneer in messaging through less conventional outlets, such as the Drudge Report, and influencing the public image of candidates and organizations who oppose his clients. He was the campaign manager of Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign and a founder of America Rising. Rhoades is currently serving as Co-CEO at CGCN Group, a Washington, D.C.-based public affairs firm.

Jackson Thomas Stephens Sr was an oilman and investment banker. He was the CEO of Little Rock, Arkansas-based Stephens Inc., a privately owned financial services company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Crossroads</span>

American Crossroads is a US Super PAC that raises funds from donors to advocate for certain candidates of the Republican Party. It has pioneered many of the new methods of fundraising opened up by the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United. Its president is Steven J. Law, a former United States Deputy Secretary of Labor for President George W. Bush and the Chairman of the Board of Directors is former Republican National Committee chairman Mike Duncan. Advisers to the group include Senior Advisor and former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harold Hamm</span> American businessman (born 1945)

Harold Glenn Hamm is an American business magnate in the oil and gas business. He is known for pioneering fracking of shale oil resources. As of February 4, 2022, Hamm's net worth is estimated to be US$18.5 billion, making him the 63rd wealthiest person in the world. He is the founder and chairman of Continental Resources.

Restore Our Future is a political action committee (PAC) created to support Mitt Romney in the 2012 U.S. Presidential election. A so-called Super PAC, Restore Our Future is permitted to raise and spend unlimited amounts of corporate, union, and individual campaign contributions under the terms of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision.

Carl Forti is an American Republican Party strategist who is the political director of Karl Rove's American Crossroads Super PAC. He was political director for Mitt Romney in 2008. Prior to joining American Crossroads, Forti has co-founded the Black Rock Group and has been instrumental in the formation of Republican 527's and Super PACs. He has been referred to as "Karl Rove's Karl Rove", "one of the smartest people in politics you've never heard of," and "the Alexander the Great of the Republican independent expenditure world."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Fernandez</span> American businessman

Miguel B. "Mike" Fernandez is an American health care industry businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He is the founder of MBF Healthcare Partners, a private equity firm founded in 2005 in Coral Gables, Florida. Fernandez is a major Republican donor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Johnson 2016 presidential campaign</span> Political campaign

The 2016 presidential campaign of Gary Johnson, the 29th Governor of New Mexico, was announced on January 6, 2016, for the nomination of the Libertarian Party for President of the United States. He officially won the nomination on May 29, 2016, at the Libertarian National Convention in Orlando, Florida, receiving 56% of the vote on the second ballot. Former Massachusetts Governor William Weld was endorsed by Johnson for the Libertarian vice-presidential nomination, which he also received on May 29, 2016.

Right to Rise is a political action committee (PAC) created to support Jeb Bush in the 2016 presidential election. A Super PAC, Right to Rise is permitted to raise and spend unlimited amounts of corporate, union, and individual campaign contributions under the terms of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision.

William Ernst Oberndorf is an American billionaire businessman and Republican political donor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mitt Romney's 2016 anti-Trump speech</span>

On March 3, 2016, U.S. Republican politician Mitt Romney delivered a major speech for the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the Libby Gardner Hall in the University of Utah. In that speech, he denounced Donald Trump, who was then the front-runner in the 2016 Republican Party presidential primaries. He urged citizens to use tactical voting in the remaining primaries and caucuses to maximize the chance of denying Trump a delegate majority.

Rebekah Mercer is an American heiress and Republican political donor, and director of the Mercer Family Foundation.

References

  1. ↑ "Warren Stephens". Stephens.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Stephens History". Stephens. Archived from the original on December 8, 2014. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
  3. 1 2 "W&L". Washington & Lee.
  4. ↑ "University of Arkansas/Walton College/Arkansas Business Hall of Fame/Warren A. Stephens" . Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Dillard's Board of Directors". Bloomberg Business Week. Archived from the original on December 13, 2014.
  6. 1 2 Steven Barnes, 'PRIVATE SECTOR; Understatement, at $5 Billion', in The New York Times , November 21, 1999
  7. ↑ Schouten, Fredreka (July 13, 2012). "Mitt Romney announces three bundlers". USA Today. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Warren Stephens". Forbes . Archived from the original on May 28, 2023.
  9. ↑ BusinessWeek profile
  10. ↑ Mider, Zachary (March 21, 2016). "Arkansas Billionaire Warren Stephens A Leading Stop-Trump Donor". Southwest Times Record. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  11. ↑ Schwartz, Brian (July 31, 2023). "Almost all of Trump's biggest 2020 super PAC donors refrain from giving to his rivals". NBC News.
  12. ↑ Reston, Maeve; Morse, Clara Ence; Knowles, Hanna (February 1, 2024). "Trump spent more than $55 million in donor money on legal fees last year, filings show". Washington Post.
  13. ↑ Woodward, Alex. "Reclusive Republican megadonor drops $50m into Trump super PAC". Independent.
  14. ↑ "Episcopal Collegiate School: History". Episcopal Collegiate School.
  15. ↑ "The King of Little Rock". Barron's.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.