We provide investment banking, research, sales and trading, asset and wealth management, public finance, insurance, private capital, and family office services.
We are a family-owned financial services firm that values client relationships, long-term stability, and supporting the communities where we live and work.
The idea of family defines our culture, because each of us knows that our reputation is on the line as if our own name was on the door.
Our reputation as a leading independent financial services firm is built on the stability of our longstanding and highly experienced senior executives.
We are committed to corporate philanthropy; economic and financial literacy advocacy; and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
Stephens is proud to sponsor the PGA TOUR, LPGA Tour, and PGA TOUR Champions careers, as well as applaud the philanthropic endeavors, of our Brand Ambassadors.
We host many highly informative meetings each year with clients, industry decision makers, and thought leaders across the U.S. and in Europe.
We provide fiduciary investment strategies to public-and private-sector institutional clients through asset allocation, consulting, and retirement services.
Decades of proven performance and experience in providing tailored fixed income trading and underwriting services to major municipal and corporate issuers.
Proven industry-leading research, global market insights, and client-focused execution.
Customized risk management, property & casualty, executive strategies and employee benefits solutions that protect our clients over the long term.
We assist companies with accessing capital through innovative advisory and execution services that help firms achieve their strategic goals.
We have been a trusted and reliable source of capital for private companies for over 70 years.
Our experienced Private Client Group professionals develop customized investment strategies to help clients achieve their financial goals.
We are a trusted municipal advisor with proven expertise in public financings. We also work with clients in negotiated and competitive municipal underwritings.
Welcome to the Stephens Public Finance 2023 Mid-Year Review. I am thrilled to share with you this summary of our insights and activities from the first half of 2023. Our bankers have captured their best ideas and distilled them into actionable takeaways for the municipal market.
Alfred Ray offers his keen perspective on The Stephens Approach. Lyman Wray provides thoughts on serving the diverse needs and priorities of clients in the American South. Jason Holsclaw examines funding for critical public infrastructure projects. Kevin Faught recalls how Arkansas communities such as Springdale have achieved surprising levels of growth.
Leigh Ann Biernat and Jack Truemper also deliver a case study on funding for improvements to Arkansas Children’s Hospital. This project is of vital interest to the state due to the hospital’s role in serving the most vulnerable residents. It also holds special meaning for Stephens, which successfully served as sole managing underwriter for the hospital for the first time in our 42-year relationship.
And I analyze how the Financial Data Transparency Act (FDTA) of 2022 that Congress passed in December is poised to have far reaching impacts on financial institutions, investors, and municipal issuers nationwide over the next few years.
Although the municipal bond market continues to be very challenging, in terms of public finance transactions, we were quite active in the first half of 2023, completing transactions representing approximately $1.7 billion across governmental and nonprofit entities in the United States. Initial indications suggest the second half of the year will be just as robust.
As always, the Stephens Public Finance Group stands ready to provide expertise to our clients as they seek to access capital and achieve their unique funding goals in service to their communities. I sincerely hope you enjoy the entries in the Stephens Public Finance 2023 Mid-Year Review. Please always feel free to reach out to our team for more information.
