Exhibit 99.1

Clifton Bancorp Inc. Announces

Financial Results for the Second Quarter Ended September 30, 2017;

Declares Cash Dividend

Clifton, New Jersey – November 1, 2017 — Clifton Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq: CSBK) (the “Company”), the holding company for Clifton Savings Bank (“CSBK”), today announced results for the second quarter ended September 30, 2017. Net income for the second quarter was $2.31 million ($0.11 per share, basic and diluted) as compared to net income of $1.24 million ($0.06 per share, basic and diluted) for the second quarter ended September 30, 2016. Net income for the six months ended September 30, 2017 was $3.71 million ($0.17 per share, basic and diluted) as compared to $2.26 million ($0.10 per share, basic and diluted) for the same period in 2016.

The Board of Directors also announced today a cash dividend of $0.06 per common share for the quarter ended September 30, 2017. The dividend will be paid on December 1, 2017 to stockholders of record on November 17, 2017.

Notable Items

Paul M. Aguggia, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “We are pleased with our second quarter results as we increased net income in the face of continuing margin pressure. The primary driver of our increased earnings continues to be our overall loan growth. We approach the second half of our fiscal year with continued confidence in our ability to generate relatively higher yielding assets. Lowering our cost of funds remains a priority, but is a significant challenge in our hyper competitive deposit-gathering environment. ”

Balance Sheet and Credit Quality Review

Total assets increased $122.7 million, or 8.6%, from $1.43 billion at March 31, 2017, to $1.55 billion at September 30, 2017. The increase in total assets was primarily due to an increase in loans.

Net loans increased $132.6 million, or 13.2%, from $1.01 billion at March 31, 2017, to $1.14 billion at September 30, 2017. One-to-four family real estate loans increased $21.0 million, or 3.0%, while multi-family and commercial real estate loans increased $112.4 million, or 38.2%, during the six months ended September 30, 2017. Securities, including both available for sale and held to maturity issues, decreased $15.7 million, or 5.0%, from $315.3 million at March 31, 2017, to $299.6 million at September 30, 2017, mainly due to sales, maturities and repayments. Securities held to maturity totaling $10.2 million were sold during the six-month period ended September 30, 2017, resulting in a gain of $593,000. One security totaling $3.7 million was sold during the six-month period ended September 30, 2016, resulting in a gain of $84,000. Cash and cash equivalents increased $1.4 million, or 9.5%, from $14.7 million at March 31, 2017, to $16.0 million at September 30, 2017, as a small portion of cash flows from deposits and borrowed funds were not yet redeployed into higher yielding assets.

Deposits increased $69.7 million, or 8.3%, from $844.8 million at March 31, 2017, to $914.6 million at September 30, 2017. CSBK launched a high-yielding checking account in May 2017 that was responsible for a significant percentage of the period’s deposit growth. Borrowed funds increased $64.9 million, or 23.5%, from $275.8 million at March 31, 2017, to $340.7 million at September 30, 2017. The Company’s outstanding borrowings at September 30, 2017 had a weighted average rate of 1.81% and a weighted average term of 19 months. All outstanding borrowings are with the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York.

Total stockholders’ equity decreased $10.7 million, or 3.6%, from $296.6 million at March 31, 2017, to $285.9 million at September 30, 2017 primarily as a result of $8.7 million in repurchases of common stock, and the payment of $7.9 million in cash dividends, including the $0.25 special dividend paid in July totaling $5.3 million, partially offset by net income of $3.7 million.

Nonaccrual loans increased $656,000, or 17.8%, to $4.3 million at September 30, 2017 as compared to $3.7 million at March 31, 2017. Included in nonaccrual loans at September 30, 2017 were seven loans totaling $1.2 million that were current or less than 90 days delinquent,

but which were previously 90 days or more delinquent and on nonaccrual status pending a sustained period of repayment performance (generally six months). The percentage of nonperforming loans to total gross loans was 0.41% at both September 30, 2017 and March 31, 2017. The allowance for loan losses to nonperforming loans increased to 154.12% at September 30, 2017 from 146.11% at March 31, 2017, as nonperforming one-to-four family loans increased slightly and provisions were added (mainly due to significant increases in loans outstanding).

Income Statement Review

Net interest income increased by $1.1 million, or 16.0%, to $8.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2017, as compared to $7.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2016. Net interest income increased despite a decrease of 7 basis points in net interest margin and a decrease of $9.6 million in average net interest-earning assets. The increase was primarily due to other categories of interest-earning assets being redeployed into CSBK’s highest yielding asset category (multi-family and commercial loans).

Net interest income increased by $2.1 million, or 14.9%, to $16.1 million for the six months ended September 30, 2017, as compared to $14.0 million for the six months ended September 30, 2016. Net interest income increased despite a decrease of 8 basis points in net interest margin and a decrease of $9.2 million in average net interest-earning assets. Net interest income increased for the reason noted above.

The provision for loan losses increased $105,000, or 20.8%, to $610,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2017, as compared to $505,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2016, and increased $169,000, or 16.4%, to $1.20 million for the six months ended September 30, 2017, as compared to $1.03 million for the six months ended September 30, 2016. The increases in the provisions for both periods were due in large part to the significant growth in the balance of outstanding loans, mainly commercial and multi-family real estate loans, which based on their risk profile require more reserves than residential loans.

Non-interest income for the three months ended September 30, 2017 increased $610,000, or 121.8%, to $1.11 million, as compared to $501,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2016, as the 2017 period included a $593,000 gain on the sale of securities and a $75,000 gain on the sale of real estate owned, compared to no gains noted in the 2016 period.

Non-interest income for the six months ended September 30, 2017 increased $530,000, or 51.6%, to $1.6 million, as compared to $1.0 million for the six months ended September 30, 2016, mostly due to the gains noted above in the 2017 period. The 2016 period included an $84,000 gain on the sale of securities.

Non-interest expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2017 increased $79,000, or 1.5%, to $5.4 million, as compared to $5.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2016. The increase consisted primarily of increases in advertising and marketing expenses of $68,000, or 68.7%, and occupancy expenses of $59,000, or 13.6%, partially offset by a decrease in federal deposit insurance premium of $44,000, or 29.0%. The increase in advertising and marketing expenses was related to the costs to promote CSBK’s recently

opened Hoboken and Montclair banking centers, as well as the new checking account product referenced above. The increase in occupancy expenses was mainly related to operational costs of the Montclair banking center. The decrease in federal deposit insurance premium in the 2017 period was due to the revision of the FDIC assessment system, which began on July 1, 2016, and is only partially reflected in the 2016 period expense. Revisions for “small institutions” (under $10 billion in assets) resulted in, among other things, a change in the financial ratios method used to determine assessment rates.

Non-interest expenses for the six months ended September 30, 2017 increased $212,000, or 2.0%, to $11.0 million, as compared to $10.8 million for the six months ended September 30, 2016. The increase consisted primarily of increases in advertising and marketing expenses of $149,000, or 59.1%, and occupancy expenses of $102,000, or 12.0%, partially offset by a decrease in federal deposit insurance premium of $87,000, or 30.0%. The increases relate to the same items noted above.

Income taxes for the three months ended September 30, 2017 increased $496,000, or 96.7%, to $1.0 million, as compared to $513,000 for the three ended September 30, 2016, and increased $781,000, or 81.3%, to $1.74 million for the six months ended September 30, 2017, as compared to $961,000 for the six months ended September 30, 2016. The increases resulted from higher pre-tax income, coupled with a slight increase in the effective income tax rate. The overall effective income tax rates were 30.4% and 32.0%, respectively for the 2017 periods compared with 29.3% and 29.9%, respectively for the 2016 periods.

About Clifton Bancorp Inc.

Clifton Bancorp Inc. is the holding company for CSBK (Clifton Savings Bank), a federally chartered savings bank headquartered in Clifton, New Jersey. CSBK is a metropolitan, community-focused bank serving residents and businesses in its market area through 12 full-service banking centers. For additional investor relations information, including subscribing to email alerts, visit cliftonbancorp.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Clifton Bancorp makes forward-looking statements in this news release. These forward-looking statements may include: statements of goals, intentions, earnings expectations, and other expectations; estimates of risks and of future costs and benefits; assessments of probable loan and lease losses; assessments of market risk; and statements of the ability to achieve financial and other goals.

Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “outlook,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “project” and other similar words and expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which change over time. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Clifton Bancorp does not assume any duty and does not undertake to update its forward-looking statements. Because forward-looking statements are subject to assumptions and uncertainties, actual results or future events could differ, possibly materially, from those that Clifton Bancorp anticipated in its forward-looking statements and future results could differ materially from historical performance.

Clifton Bancorp’s forward-looking statements are subject to the following principal risks and uncertainties: general economic conditions and trends, either nationally or locally; conditions in the securities markets; changes in interest rates; changes in deposit flows, and in the demand for deposit, loan, and investment products and other financial services; changes in real estate values; changes in the quality or composition of the loan or investment portfolios; changes in competitive pressures among financial institutions or from non-financial institutions; the ability to retain key members of management; changes in legislation, regulations, and policies; and a variety of other matters which, by their nature, are subject to significant uncertainties. Clifton Bancorp provides greater detail regarding some of these factors in the “Risk Factors” section of its Annual Report on Form 10-K, which was filed on June 8, 2017. Clifton Bancorp’s forward-looking statements may also be subject to other risks and uncertainties, including those that it may discuss elsewhere in this news release or in its filings with the SEC, accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

Selected Consolidated Financial Condition Data

Selected Consolidated Operating Data

Average Balance Table

Asset Quality Data

Selected Consolidated Financial Ratios

Quarterly Data