Contrasting Franklin Mining (OTCMKTS:FMNJ) and NioCorp Developments (NASDAQ:NB)

NioCorp Developments (NASDAQ:NB) and Franklin Mining (OTCMKTS:FMNJ) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares NioCorp Developments and Franklin Mining’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
NioCorp Developments	N/A	-25.73%	-21.10%
Franklin Mining	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for NioCorp Developments and Franklin Mining, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
NioCorp Developments	1	1	3	0	2.40
Franklin Mining	0	0	0	0	0.00

NioCorp Developments presently has a consensus target price of $8.32, indicating a potential upside of 88.16%. Given NioCorp Developments’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe NioCorp Developments is more favorable than Franklin Mining.

Risk and Volatility

NioCorp Developments has a beta of -0.12, meaning that its stock price is 112% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Franklin Mining has a beta of -0.2, meaning that its stock price is 120% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

4.0% of NioCorp Developments shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.2% of NioCorp Developments shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 20.0% of Franklin Mining shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares NioCorp Developments and Franklin Mining”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
NioCorp Developments	N/A	N/A	-$17.41 million	($0.81)	-5.46
Franklin Mining	N/A	N/A	-$430,000.00	($0.03)	-0.06

NioCorp Developments is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Franklin Mining, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Franklin Mining beats NioCorp Developments on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About NioCorp Developments

NioCorp Developments Ltd. engages in the exploration and development of mineral deposits in North America. It owns and develops the Elk Creek niobium/scandium/titanium project that owns one 226.43-acre parcel of land and associated mineral rights, and an additional 40 acres of mineral rights, as well as an optioned land package that covers an area of 1,396 acres located in Johnson County, southeast Nebraska. The company was formerly known as Quantum Rare Earth Developments Corp. and changed its name to NioCorp Developments Ltd. in March 2013. NioCorp Developments Ltd. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Centennial, Colorado.

About Franklin Mining

Franklin Mining, Inc., a mining and exploration company, acquires and develops mineral properties. The company explores for gold, silver, lead, and zinc deposits. It owns interests in the La Joya mining concession in Bolivia; and Madre de Dios Area, Ch-Mine, and Los Totems project in Peru. The company was formerly known as WCM Capital, Inc. Franklin Mining, Inc. was founded in 1864 and is based in Carson City, Nevada.