UPDATE 1-Sharp posts first qtrly profit in yr, TVs recover

* Q2 profit nearly doubles to Y27.6 bln; consensus Y25.2 bln

* Keeps annual oper profit forecast at 50 bln yen

* Shares close down 1.0 pct before results (Recasts with quarterly results, add closing share price)

TOKYO, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Japan's Sharp Corp (6753.T) posted its first quarterly profit in a year on Thursday as a recovery in TV and panel demand helped offset a firmer yen, and the world's fourth-largest LCD TV maker kept its annual outlook above market expectations.

Sharp's TVs, panels and solar cells have made steady progress towards profitability from the depths of the global downturn at the start of the year as governments introduce measures to stimulate spending and consumers start loosening their purse strings.

But fierce global competition and the yen's strength against the dollar JPY= continued to weigh.

Sharp, which trails Samsung Electronics Co (005930.KS), Sony Corp (6758.T) and LG Electronics Inc (066570.KS) in LCD TVs, stuck to its forecast for an operating profit of 50 billion yen in the full year to March.

That would be a turnaround from a 55.48 billion yen loss last year and above the consensus of a 30.6 billion yen profit in a poll of 21 analysts by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Sharp, which makes and sells Aquos brand LCD TVs, started output at its $4.7 billion, cutting-edge LCD panel plant in Japan this month, boosting the price competitiveness of its panels, but also raising concerns over a supply glut. Besides LCD panels and TVs, the company is betting heavily on the growth potential of solar panels as people turn to renewable energy sources to help combat global warming. Sharp plans to start a major solar cell plant by March next year to better compete with Germany's Q-Cells (QCEG.DE) and other rivals. Operating profit totalled 27.6 billion yen in July-September, up from a 14.3 billion yen profit a year earlier and slightly better than the average estimate of a 25.2 billion yen profit from five analysts. Prior to the announcement, shares in Sharp closed down 1 percent at 967 yen. The Tokyo stock market's electrical machinery index .IELEC.T fell 0.7 percent.

Sharp shares put on 54 percent from the start of the year to Wednesday, while the subindex rose 29 percent. (Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Michael Watson)