UPDATE 2-JVC Kenwood aims for 2010/11 oper margin of 5.2 pct

(Adds CEO comments, closing share price, background)

TOKYO, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Japanese electronics maker JVC Kenwood Holdings Inc (6632.T) said it aims to boost its operating profit margin to 5.2 percent by the year ending March 2011, up from an estimated 3.1 percent this business year.

JVC Kenwood was established on Wednesday through a merger between consumer electronics firm Victor Co of Japan (JVC) and Kenwood Corp, an audio equipment and car electronics maker, in an attempt to survive fierce competition by pooling their resources.

The company said it aims for an operating profit of 39 billion yen ($368 million) on sales of 750 billion yen for the business year that ends on March 31, 2011.

Those figures would still be less than one-tenth of Sony Corp's (6758.T) estimated revenues and profit for the year to March 2009. But the targeted operating margin of 5.2 percent is in line with Sony's.

For the current business year to March, JVC Kenwood expects an operating profit of 12.5 billion yen and revenues of 400 billion yen.

The estimated sales, which take into account full-year earnings at Kenwood and JVC's performance in the six months to March, are equivalent to half of the combined revenues of the two firms a year ago due to accounting changes and a slowdown in the global economy.

Shares in JVC Kenwood closed at 69 yen on their first trading day, well below a theoretical starting price calculated by the Tokyo Stock Exchange of 76 yen and per-share net assets of around 112 yen.

"Considering the level of our net assets, the share price looks surprisingly cheap to us," JVC Kenwood Chief Executive Haruo Kawahara told a news conference.

Investor concerns about its loss-making display business and uncertainty as to how the turmoil in the global financial market will affect its earnings are likely to be hurting its share price, Kawahara said.

JVC Kenwood aims to make its display operations, which include LCD TVs, profitable in the January-March quarter, JVC Kenwood President Kunihiko Sato said.

JVC and Kenwood continue to operate under the holding company, which is owned 24 percent by consumer electronics giant Panasonic Corp (6752.T).

Kenwood is the world's second-largest maker of wireless radio equipment such as Walkie-talkies behind Motorola Inc (MOT.N), and competes with Pioneer Corp (6773.T) in the car audio and car navigation system market, while JVC offers home electronics such as flat TVs and camcorders.

(Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka)