Imagine the elation if Lucy finally let Charlie Brown kick the ball. Citigroup investors experienced something similar on Monday.

The bank surprised markets with first-quarter results that meaningfully exceeded analyst forecasts, even if those had been significantly reduced since the year's start. After two preceding quarters, in which Citi failed to meet already lowered expectations, a revelation of fraud in Mexico and a rejection of Citi's capital-return request by the Federal Reserve, discovering the ball hadn't been yanked away this time was a welcome change.