Raffles Medical Group's stock is soaring 3.26% in intraday trading on Tuesday, following a positive research report from RHB Research. The healthcare provider's shares have gained traction after analyst Shekhar Jaiswal upgraded the stock to "buy" from "neutral" and raised the target price to S$1.08 from S$0.95.

The upgrade comes as RHB Research identifies Raffles Medical as a likely defensive option in the current volatile market environment. Jaiswal notes that the company's healthcare business has normalized, with patient load returning to pre-pandemic levels. Moreover, the analyst expects the hospital business to see higher revenue as its China-based hospitals, previously affected by pandemic restrictions, begin to scale up operations.

Investors appear to be responding positively to the improved outlook and the defensive nature of Raffles Medical's earnings amid macroeconomic uncertainties. The stock's strong performance today reflects growing confidence in the company's ability to navigate the current market conditions and potentially outperform in the healthcare sector.