PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a soft magnetic alloy for perpendicular magnetic recording medium exhibiting low Bs at room temperature and less in reduction width of Bs at high temperature and a sputtering target material for manufacturing a thin film of the alloy.SOLUTION: There are provided an alloy for soft magnetic thin film layer in a perpendicular magnetic recording medium containing, by at%, one or more kind of Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, W, Mn, Ni, Cu, Al, B, C, Si, P, Zn, Ga, Ge, Sn and the balance Co and Fe with inevitable impurities and satisfying following formulae (1) to (4) and a sputtering target material.(1)0.1≤Fe%/(Fe%+Co%)≤0.5 (2)5≤Ti%+Zr%+Hf%+V%+Nb%+Ta%+B%/2 (3)0.3≤0.813×Fe%/(Fe%+Co%)-0.062×TNM+1.751≤1.2 (4)Ni:1% or less and B:10% or less.SELECTED DRAWING: None
