Pinch zoom never behaved as you would expect.
Comp Panel:
To zoom into a specific area in a comp center the selection tool on the area you want to move in on, Alt/Option and the selection tool will change to double arrows, one black, one white, two-finger drag scales on the center of the double selection tool. Personally, I like I a lot more than a pinch zoom in other apps. It is a lot easier to be accurate.
Timeline:
Same behavior. Center the cursor on the time you want to take a closer look at and a two-finger move in or out on the timeline.
Straight two-finger drag moves the timeline.
The same trick works in the Premiere Pro timeline. Unfortunately, that is the only panel that the trick works.