3 Top Tech Dividend Stocks for 2012

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- With Dell(DELL) becoming the latest tech giant to perform an about-turn in its dividend strategy, tech sector dividends are once again in the investor spotlight.

The no. 2 PC maker may have grabbed most of the headlines when it announced plans for a quarterly payment of 8 cents per share last week, but experts say that Microsoft(MSFT) , Intel(INTC) and Cypress Semiconductor(CY) are the key tech dividend stocks.

Ratings agency Moody's cites Microsoft as the tech dividend leader after making more than $5.7 billion in dividend payments in 2011, although Apple(AAPL) is expected to surpass the software giant after reinstating its dividend following a 17-year hiatus. The iPhone maker plans to institute its quarterly payment sometime in its fiscal fourth quarter, which begins on July 1, 2012.

Dell(DELL) and Apple(AAPL) , of course, are just the two latest tech firms rethinking their dividends. Cisco(CSCO) , initiated its first-ever cash dividend in 2011, as did Lexmark(LXK) and Intuit(INTU) . Hard drive maker Seagate(STX) also reinstated its dividend in 2011.