Analyst recommendation at the end of the day is just an "opinion" - having said, post the dot com bust, analysts are required to make full disclosure. So they have to disclose their methodology, parameters used, and also give a comparison of their target price vis-a-vis the market price. Also, there is a concept of a Chinese Wall between the research and brokerage sections of a firm - analysts cannot disclose any information to the broker, and also there cannot be direct professional exchange between them unless it is disclosed. So while the article makes sense, the analyst & broker being in cohorts is less now. Though, this is stricter in US than in India
