ITC shares touched a day’s high of Rs 268.50 today, driven by fresh cigarette price hikes and steady buying interest across sessions.

Reports this week pointed to another round of cigarette price hikes by the company.

Classic Connect has gone up by nearly 10% to around Rs 21.4 per stick. Gold Flake Super Star now costs Rs 89 for a pack of 10 cigarettes.

This is not the first hike this year. ITC had already raised cigarette prices back in February, shortly after the government pushed through a steep tax increase of close to 40% on the category.

Cigarettes remain central to ITC’s earnings story. The segment makes up roughly 40% of the company’s segment revenue, but its share of operating profit is far higher.

When prices go up like this, it usually helps the company absorb rising taxes and costs, so long as smokers don’t cut back sharply on volumes.

There’s a bigger corporate update sitting in the background too. On September 1, ITC Infotech, a wholly owned subsidiary of ITC, announced a merger with Happiest Minds Technologies.

The plan is to build an AI-first company aiming for $1 billion in turnover by FY28. Once the merger goes through, ITC Limited will hold a 73.4% stake in the combined entity.

On the earnings side, ITC’s consolidated net profit fell 15.6% to Rs 4,508.79 crore for the June 2026 quarter, mainly on account of higher expenses.

Revenue from operations, however, grew a solid 27.64% during the same period, so the topline picture looks healthier than the profit number suggests.

As of 10:25 am, ITC shares are currently at Rs 267.90 on the NSE, up 1.42%, with the stock swinging between a low of Rs 264.10 and a high of Rs 268.50 through the session so far.

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