3 Tech Turnaround Stocks for 2012

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- While 2011 was a good year for tech stocks like IBM(IBM) and Apple(AAPL), it was a punishing one for less fortunate names such as Cisco(CSCO), Renren(RENN) and Advanced Micro Devices(AMD).

There's good news, though, for investors. While Cisco, Renren and AMD were hit hard last year, all are poised for a turnaround in 2012.

Cisco

2011 was a messy year for Cisco. Shares fell nearly 11% after the network equipment maker's foray into the consumer space fell flat and distracted the company from its core networking business. In response, CEO John Chambers announced a turnaround plan that involved cutting jobs and a major revamp of the company's management structure.

While it may be too early to tell if Cisco's turnaround is working -- the company releases its second quarter earnings on Wednesday -- analysts are already bullish on the stock.

Last week, Baird raised its full year 2012 revenue and earnings per share estimates and upped its price target to $21.

Auriga USA also raised its price target to $24, noting Cisco "is benefiting from a stronger enterprise/public sector spending environment and also improving product cycles in multiple segments."

Analysts on average are expecting Cisco to report earnings of 43 cents per share and revenue of $11.23 billion during the quarter.

Shares of Cisco have risen over 11% since the beginning of the year.