Merrill Lynch analysts now have to run their stock recommendation changes by an internal committee, according to a report in the Wall Street Letter.

The newsletter says that Merrill is making analysts go through a committee review before making changes to stock recommendations. The committee review procedure already existed, but it was rarely used in the last few years.

The newsletter says that a group of research directors and senior analysts will now review research reports and ratings to see if the research is sound. “We weren’t doing it as aggressively before. It’s been reinstated,” an anonymous executive said.

In the past, Merrill’s committee would review calls only when an analyst initiated coverage or wanted to upgrade a recommendation. Now, the committee will also review “each and every opinion rating change and material earnings estimate reduction,” said Angela Wrigglesworth, a Merrill spokeswoman. “The expanded role of the investment review committee, along with other enhancements to our ratings and research policies, were made to provide greater clarity in our ratings system and enhance investor confidence in our research.”

The report says that Goldman Sachs is also using its investment review committee more frequently and Morgan Stanley has had a similar investment review process in place for a while.

Also in an effort to improve analysts credibility, HSBC Holdings Plc, has told its equity analysts to publish as many negative recommendations on stocks as positive ones.

Bloomberg reports that analysts will advise customers to buy shares expected to perform better than industry averages, while recommending that clients sell companies likely to perform more poorly and analysts will no longer be able to have “hold” recommendations.