CUPERTINO — After helping lead Apple through a decade of blistering growth, Peter Oppenheimer is stepping down in September as the tech giant’s top bean counter.

He’ll be replaced by company controller Luca Maestri, who was hired a year ago and has more than 25 years’ experience in senior financial management, including stints as CFO at both Nokia Siemens Networks and Xerox.

The announcement Tuesday comes a day after Goldman Sachs named Oppenheimer to its board. The 51-year-old CFO will begin transferring responsibilities to Maestri in June. Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement the company knew Maestri would ultimately succeed Oppenheimer when it recruited him as controller a year ago. Maestri, who turned 50 in October.

“Peter has served as our CFO for the past decade as Apple’s annual revenue grew from $8 billion to $171 billion and our global footprint expanded dramatically,” Cook said in a statement. “His guidance, leadership and expertise have been instrumental to Apple’s success, not only as our CFO but also in many areas beyond finance, as he frequently took on additional activities to assist across the company.”

Calling Oppenheimer “a dear friend I always knew I could count on,” Cook said the CFO has created “a professional succession plan to ensure Apple doesn’t miss a beat.”

Oppenheimer made headlines when Bloomberg announced he was the highest-paid CFO in 2012, taking home a $68.6 million package, dwarfing the $4.17 million that went to Cook that year.

“I love Apple and the people I have had the privilege to work with, and after 18 years here, it is time for me to take time for myself and my family,” Oppenheimer said. “For quite some time, I have wanted to live on the central coast of California and get more involved at Cal Poly, my alma mater; spend more time with my wife and sons; travel to interesting parts of the world; and something I have wanted to do for years — finish the requirements for my pilot’s license.”

Analyst Ben Bajarin with Creative Strategies praised the move, calling it “another step in that transition of post-Steve Jobs leadership” at the company and specifically noting Maestri’s international experience as it continues the aggressive expansion overseas that was a key part of Oppenheimer’s tenure at the company.

Contact Patrick May at 408-920-5689; follow him at Twitter.com/patmaymerc.