Ban won't impact ITC, it's a good time to buy the stock: Prakash Diwan

In a chat with ET Now, PrakashDiwan, Director, Altamount Capital Management, shares his views on ITC.
ET Now: Does ITC really get impacted by smoking ban or do you think that the juggernaut continues?

Prakash Diwan: ITC would not get impacted too much. There could be a blip in the interim just because they would like to reorient their distribution model.

Pricing does not really matter so much. People who want to smoke will smoke. What it does is it changes the packaging, the potential for ITC is to change the packaging. They could come up with five-cigarette packs if not two. So we have seen that happen on the gutka and pan masala segment also. It never sold as much as it sells in sachets. The ban might reorient the habit of people

If you see a dip today because of this, you probably buy into ITC.

Also, ITC is focussing a lot on the noncore activities as well. ITC with the food business going up, with the personal care business going up, has to get something more than what it gets for the residual business, for the non-tobacco part.