UPDATE 1-William Demant repeats 2009 sales guidance

* Repeats sees 2009 sales exceeding market growth by 2-4 pct

* Says hearing aid market stabilised in Q1

* CEO says 'horror scenario' is called off

(Adds detail, CEO comment, background, share price)

COPENHAGEN, May 12, (Reuters) - William Demant (WDH.CO), the world's second-biggest hearing aid maker, said on Tuesday its hearing aid business had developed in line with plans so far this year, and stood by its full-year sales guidance.

The Danish firm said in a quarterly update, which doesn't include a profit and loss statement, that the hearing aid market had stabilised in the first quarter.

"If anyone had feared that we would see a further deterioration of the market situation after a weak second half of 2008, and especially the fourth quarter, we can say that it doesn't look like it," Chief Executive Officer Niels Jacobsen told Reuters.

"The horror scenario has been called off."

The company said prices at its hearing aid business were back at levels last seen in the first quarter of 2008, after having been under pressure last autumn.

"In our annual report 2008, we announced that in 2009 the group expects to see growth in revenues exceeding market growth by 2-4 percent. Trends in the past part of 2009 support this expectation, which is therefore maintained," it said in a statement.

Demant's hearing aid products stand for around 80 percent of group revenues and have a global market share of nearly 20 percent. Siemens (SIEGn.DE) is the biggest global market player, Swiss Sonova SOON.S is No. 3 and Denmark's GN Store Nord (GN.CO) No. 4.

Shares in the firm rose 0.74 percent to 271 Danish crowns at 0838 GMT while the wider market in Copenhagen was up 1 percent. By Monday's close, shares in Demant had been up 23 percent year-to-date.

Demant said two recently launched product families within its main Oticon brand, in the lower end of the mid-range price segment, had been well received.

Besides the Oticon brand, Demant also has a smaller brand, Bernafon.

Demant also plans to develop bone-anchored hearing aids, which target people who cannot be helped with ordinary aids.

(Reporting by Teis Jensen; Writing by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Sharon Lindores)