Analysts knew things were going well at J.P. Morgan Chase, but no one guessed this well. The nation's third-largest bank cheered investors by reporting its earnings were up 55 percent for the first quarter of 2007.

Shares in J.P. Morgan surged $2.07 to $52.25 this morning on the better-than-expected results.

Net income of $4.8 billion, or $1.34 per share, and $19 billion in revenue represent new records for the global financial services giant. The bank posted earnings of $3.1 billion, or 86 cents a share, for the same period last year, and for this quarter, Wall Street had expected earnings of $1.02 a share and revenue of $16.9 billion.

J.P. Morgan further sweetened the pot by announcing a dividend increase of 12 percent, or 38 cents per share, its first boost since 2001. C.E.O. Jamie Dimon also announced the authorization of a common stock repurchase of $10 billion, set to take place this July.

Investment banking, asset management, and commercial banking were among J.P. Morgan's top-performing divisions. Retail financial services and card services were affected by the ailing subprime lending market.

The investment banking division generated record earnings of $1.5 billion, up $690 million, or 81 percent, from the same quarter the prior year.

The gains there represent strong performance throughout the division, which took in $1.7 billion in investment banking fees and revenue from underwriting fees, a 48 percent increase from the same period last year. Revenue from debt underwriting fees was also a major earner, up 52 percent to $864 million.

Asset management net income reached a record $425 million, up by $112 million, or 36 percent.

Commercial banking net income came in at $304 million, up $64 million, or 27 percent, from a year ago.

Private equity results were also reported to be "very strong."

"The investment bank, asset management, and commercial banking each delivered record earnings," Dimon said in a statement. "The firm's strong results include some benefit from the generally favorable credit environment, which we do not expect to continue indefinitely."

While J.P. Morgan's diversity helped minimize its lending exposure, the firm's subprime mortgage portfolio did take a hit from higher losses driven by a weak housing market. The bank's provision for credit losses rose 21 percent in the first quarter of 2007.

Retail financial services, the most heavily affected business unit, raised its provision for credit losses to $292 million, a $207 million increase from a year ago. Card services was also a weak performer, with net income of $765 million, down $136 million from the same period last year.