LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Forbes magazine is out with its Forbes 400 list of wealthiest Americans, and Arkansas has five names on the list.
Top of the Arkansas list and 10 on the Forbes list is Jim Walton at $57.9 billion, up one spot from 2021. Walton is the son of Walmart founder Sam Walton and chairman of the Bentonville-headquartered Arvest Bank. Forbes reports he and his sister Alice are leading a program that will issue $300 million in bonds for charter schools to invest in facilities.
Rob Walton has the second position for Arkansas, with a $56.7 billion net worth. The retired Walmart chairman is Sam Walton’s oldest son. He is also the twelfth name on the Forbes 400 list. In June, Walton led a group that agreed to purchase the NFL’s Denver Broncos for $4.7 billion, a record price for a sports franchise.
Heirs of Sam Walton own roughly half of all Walmart stock, Forbes reports. Alice Walton, Sam’s only daughter, has a net worth of $55.7 billion and ranks 15 on the Forbes 400. A Texas resident, Alice’s name is not part of the Arkansas list. In total, seven members of the Walton family are on the Forbes 400 list.
Johnelle Hunt is number three on the Arkansas list, with a $4.2 billion net worth. Her wealth results from her and her late husband selling their home in 1961 to finance what would become J.B. Hunt Transport Services, one of the largest transportation companies in the country. She has donated $5 million to the J.B. and Johnelle Hunt Family Ozark Highlands Center in Springdale.
Little Rock investment banker Warren Stephens is number four on the Forbes list for Arkansas. Stephens Inc. was founded in 1933 by Stephen’s uncle Witt in 1933 and underwrote Walmart’s initial public offering in 1970. Stephens became CEO of the investment bank in 2006. Forbes does not mention it, but Stephens founded The Alotian Club, which has the only golf course in Arkansas to make America’s Greatest 100 Courses list, according to Golf Digest.
Coming in at number five on the Arkansas Forbes 400 list is Barbara Tyson, with $3 billion in net worth. Tyson inherited a stake in Tyson Foods when her husband Randal died in 1986. She serves on the board of the company, which produces roughly 20% of America’s beef, pork and chicken since 1988, Forbes reports. She is now a company consultant, having retired as a Tyson Foods vice-president in 2002.
To see full list of the richest people in America, head to Forbes.com/400.
