Bloomberg – General Motors Co. Chief Executive Officer Ed Whitacre said on a conference call he’s stepping down as CEO on Sept. 1 and will be replaced by director Dan Akerson. Whitacre will stay on as chairman, Akerson said on the call.

“Ed and I share a common vision,” he said today.

Whitacre joined the Detroit-based automaker in July 2009, the month it emerged from bankruptcy, and he replaced Fritz Henderson as CEO in December.

GM, 61 percent owned by the U.S. government, reported second-quarter net income of $1.54 billion on increased vehicle sales and production as the automaker prepares for an initial public offering.

Profit rose 44 percent from $1.07 billion in the first three months of the year. Revenue increased 44 percent from a year ago to $33.2 billion on growing sales of the Buick Excelle in China and Chevrolet Equinox in the U.S., the company said today in a statement. Operations in Europe will continue to improve, the company said.

GM is seeking to raise $12 billion to $16 billion in the offering, which would make it the second-largest in U.S. history, said a person familiar with the plan.

–With assistance from Tim Higgins, Bill Koenig and Keith Naughton in Southfield, Michigan. Editors: Jamie Butters, Kevin Orland.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeff Green in Southfield, Michigan at jgreen16@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jamie Butters at jbutters@bloomberg.net.

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